Thong Theft Thwarted

Kentucky woman allegedly fled store in hoodie, two pair of underwear-Police photo taken without hoodie

OCTOBER 28--A woman whose shoplifting bid was thwarted by employees at a Kentucky lingerie shop fled the store Monday night wearing only a hoodie and two pairs of stolen thongs. According to police, Kendra Clem, 23, was trying on garments in a dressing room at Intimate Apparel in Lexington when employees became concerned that she was trying to pinch items. When workers confronted Clem, she allegedly shoved Becky Howard, the store's owner, which prompted a clerk to pepper spray Clem.

After a scuffle, Clem fled the business, leaving behind her purse, ID, and the sweatpants and underwear she wore into the establishment. Howard told TSG that the stolen thongs--one white, one pink--cost $22.99 and $18.99 respectively. She added that customers are not usually allowed to try on underwear unless they insist on doing so (and then the items can only be tried atop their own undergarments). Clem, pictured in the below mug shot, was charged with second degree robbery, according to a criminal complaint. Free on $5000 bond, she declined to comment on the alleged thong theft when reached this afternoon at her home. Clem's bust Monday evening was the second time in a month that she had been collared by Lexington police. On September 30, Clem was busted for allegedly trafficking and possessing OxyContin, the powerful painkiller.