Howard County police are investigating a possible connection between two attempted thefts of soap from two different Ellicott City grocery stores and another clothing store robbery in Columbia during the mid-morning Tuesday.
According to police, the first attempted robbery happened at the Giant grocery store in the 9200 block of Baltimore National Pike in Ellicott City around 10:33 a.m. Police were called to the store after it was reported that two individuals attempted to steal a large amount of soap. The suspects then ran away and nothing was taken, according to police.
Three minutes later, police said, officers went to the nearby Safeway in the 4300 block of Montgomery Road, where two suspects attempted to again steal a large amount of soap. Once again, the individuals ran away and nothing was taken, police said.
At 10:57 a.m., police were called to the Nordstrom Rack clothing store in the 6100 block of Columbia Crossing in Columbia, following reports of two individuals stealing a large number of jeans and then running away.
Although police are unsure if these robberies are related, the investigation is ongoing.