Florida man accused of whacking Walgreens manager in face with Bible on Easter Sunday
Peter Owens was arrested and charged with felony battery on April 1, 2024. (Photo: Pinellas County Sheriff's Office)
CLEARWATER BEACH, Fla. - A Florida man was arrested after he allegedly whacked a Walgreens manager in the face with a Bible on Easter Sunday.
Peter Owens, 35, was arrested and charged with felony battery after the incident that unfolded at Walgreens on Poinsettia Avenue in Clearwater Beach on Sunday, according to an arrest affidavit from the Clearwater Police Department.
Owens went to Walgreens to buy a pair of headphones and got into a verbal altercation with a store employee about them, according to the affidavit. The store manager got involved and asked Owens to leave the store. That's when Owens used the brown Bible in his hand to allegedly whack her in the face before leaving the store.
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Police were able to find and take Owens into custody. He told police that he hit the store manager with his Bible because "she was being rude to him," the affidavit said, adding that "he did not mean to hit her."
Owens was released from the Pinellas County Jail the next day after posting $5,000 bond.
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The next day on April 2, Owens was arrested again.
Owens allegedly stole men's shoes and a box of Cheez-Its from Walmart on US-19 in Tarpon Springs, according to an affidavit from the Tarpon Springs Police Department.
Peter Owens was arrested and charged with petit theft on April 2, 2024. (Photo: Pinellas County Sheriff's Office)
The affidavit said Owens allegedly grabbed the snack and took it into the bathroom with him before selecting a pair of shoes from a shelf and ripping the tag off them. He then tried on the shoes and put them inside a duffle bag.
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He walked out of the store, past all points of sale and did not pay for the items, the affidavit said.
He was stopped by a loss prevention officer who then alerted police. Owens was arrested and transported to the Pinellas County Jail. As of Wednesday afternoon, he remains in custody on $150 bond, arrest records show.