Police: Man stole because he wanted to be arrested

WESTFIELD, Mass. (AP) — Police in Massachusetts have arrested a man they say stole a pack of cigarettes because he wanted to go back to jail.

Officers responded to a convenience store in Westfield on Tuesday night where a clerk told them a man asked for the cigarettes, and then walked out without paying.

The Westfield News reports that when the clerk warned the man he would call police unless he paid, the suspect said “Go ahead.”

Police found 40-year-old John Skowron Kirwan, of Springfield, at a nearby bus stop.

When an officer asked the suspect if he attempted to steal the cigarettes, the man replied: “I didn’t attempt to steal them. I stole them.”

Police say Kirwan told them he was on probation and wanted to go back to jail. He was arrested for shoplifting.

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Information from: The Westfield (Mass.) News, http://thewestfieldnews.com

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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