BEAR, DE — A theft investigation that began inside one of Delaware’s busiest shopping centers escalated into a violent confrontation Friday evening, leaving two Delaware State Police troopers injured and a Newark woman facing multiple felony charges.
According to Delaware State Police, troopers were dispatched around 6:00 p.m. on Friday, February 6, to the Christiana Mall at 132 Christiana Mall after a reported theft at a kiosk. Investigators said a woman allegedly stole a victim’s cell phone from the kiosk before leaving the mall.
Using electronic tracking, the victim was able to locate the phone at a nearby shopping center in the 1100 block of Pulaski Highway in Bear. Troopers obtained a description of the suspect and responded to the area, police said.
After searching the shopping center, troopers located the suspect, later identified as 21-year-old Shaniya Clark of Newark, inside one of the stores. Police allege that when troopers attempted to take Clark into custody, she physically resisted arrest, resulting in injuries to two troopers and damage to Delaware State Police property.
Clark was ultimately taken into custody and transported to Delaware State Police Troop 2. The injured troopers were taken to a local hospital, where they were treated and later released. Investigators recovered the stolen cell phone and returned it to the victim, police said.
Clark was charged with two counts of second-degree assault for allegedly injuring law enforcement officers, resisting arrest with force or violence causing injury, theft under $1,500, and two counts of criminal mischief under $1,000. She was arraigned in Justice of the Peace Court 2 and committed to the Delores J. Baylor Women’s Correctional Institution on $5,900 cash bond.
The charges are allegations, and as with all criminal cases, the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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