CHUBBUCK — A 32-year-old local man was recently arrested on multiple felony and misdemeanor theft-related charges after police say he stole from the Chubbuck Walmart on at least nine separate occasions over the course of more than a month, pocketing collectible sports cards totaling nearly $1,400.

Gabriel Orlando Vasquez, of Chubbuck, has been charged with two counts each of felony grand theft and felony burglary, as well as three counts each of misdemeanor commercial burglary and petit theft following a series of incidents between May 15 and June 18, according to police and court records the Idaho State Journal recently obtained.

The investigation began to unfold June 18 when Chubbuck police responded to the Walmart on a report of a theft in progress involving a man who had stolen from the store many times before, police said. A loss prevention employee told officers the suspect, later identified as Vasquez, had entered the grocery entrance, walked directly to the sports card section near the front registers, grabbed multiple boxes of cards and carried them to the freezer section of the store, according to the police report.

Once there, Vasquez used a razor blade to cut open the card boxes, pocketed the individual packs inside and discarded the packaging before exiting through the same grocery entrance, police said. When loss prevention employees attempted to stop him on previous occasions, he would flee toward Pole Line Road, according to the police report.

On the evening of June 18, Vasquez grabbed several boxes of cards and carried them to the freezer section before realizing he was being watched, police said. He pocketed one box worth of card packs, dumped the rest and ran from the store, getting on a bicycle and fleeing east on Pole Line, according to the police report.

Officers broadcast a description of Vasquez and a sergeant with the Chubbuck Police Department, who had seen a man matching the description on a BMX-style bicycle near storage units on Eagle Road about 30 minutes earlier, repositioned to intercept him, police said. The sergeant activated emergency lights to initiate a stop when Vasquez rode past, according to the police report.

Vasquez initially slowed as if he were going to comply before riding away northbound on Eagle Road, ignoring repeated commands to stop, police said. As the sergeant followed in his vehicle, Vasquez could be seen carrying packs of cards with blue foil wrapping, the police report says. The sergeant drew his Taser and Vasquez finally stopped in the middle of the roadway, at which point he was taken into custody, police said. Officers located the card packs he had dropped in the roadway during the pursuit, according to court records.

At the Walmart loss prevention office, the employee showed officers documentation of prior thefts from the store, police said. Records showed three separate thefts totaling more than $363 on May 15, a theft of more than $129 on May 16, a theft of more than $189 on May 17, two thefts totaling more than $429 on June 13, a theft of more than $119 on June 14 and the June 18 theft of nearly $30, according to the police report. The loss prevention employee told officers he believed additional thefts may not yet have been identified, police said.

After being read his Miranda rights, Vasquez agreed to speak with officers, police said. When asked to explain his side of events, Vasquez told the officer, “Well if you’ve seen the videos already then you already know,” before declining further comment, according to the police report.

Vasquez appeared before 6th District Magistrate Judge David A. Hooste via video conference from the Bannock County Jail for an arraignment hearing Monday where he pleaded not guilty to the six misdemeanor charges — three counts of commercial burglary and three counts of petit theft — and his bond was set at $5,000. Vasquez posted the bond later Monday and was released from jail.

He is scheduled to appear in court again July 1 for a preliminary hearing. Prosecutors will attempt to present sufficient evidence to elevate the case from magistrate to district court for trial.

If convicted, both felony burglary charges carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $50,000. Both felony grand theft charges are punishable by up to 14 years in prison and a fine of up to $5,000.