By Jim Clark

Last week, the Assets Prevention Team Leader at the Target store on Somerville Ave. reportedly witnessed a customer cutting sensors off of store merchandise and placing the items in various compartments in his jacket.

Carlos Diaz, 39, of Cambridge, was confronted by the store employee and police officers who had been called to the scene after he went into the customer bathroom.

Police asked Diaz if he had any unpaid for store merchandise on him, to which he reportedly replied, “Yes, I got some things.”

Diaz was the escorted to the assets prevention office where he was searched and the merchandise in question was reportedly recovered.

When asked to identify himself, Diaz reportedly gave the officers a name that yielded a complete mismatch upon database queries.

Diaz was then advised that of the mismatched and asked again to identify himself correctly, which he finally did, according to police.

Diaz reportedly told police that he gave the false name because he was concerned that there might be a warrant out for his arrest.

The Assets Prevention Team Leader reportedly told police that Diaz had been spotted days earlier engaged in the same type of activity as was reported on that day.

Diaz was placed under arrest and charged with shoplifting over $100 by asportation and furnishing a false name or Social Security number.