BEEVILLE — Beeville Police Department investigators are looking for two suspects in a large theft of cigarettes two weeks ago.

According to a report, the initial theft occurred on Monday, March 19. When the officer arrived at the Valero South Store at 601 S. Washington St., he was told that a theft had occurred the previous day.

The manager said she had been called to the store by an employee who had noticed that the count on cigarette cartons was not right.

The manager said that, after reviewing the store’s surveillance system camera, she found that at 5:08 p.m. on March 18, a black male entered the store accompanied by a black female.

The manager said the woman approached the front counter but the man made his way back of the store to the manager’s office.

The security video showed that the man walked into the manager’s office, opened the cabinet that the cigarettes were stored in and took several cartons, putting them in his clothing.

The manager said the man then left the store with the items still hidden in his clothing.

Then, at about 5:12 p.m., the man and woman returned to the store, and that time the man had a brown or tan bag on his right shoulder. The manager said the video revealed that the male went into to the manager’s office again, opened both doors to the cigarette cabinet and began filling the bag with cartons of cigarettes.

The manager said that the woman told the cashier working the front counter that she and her boyfriend were in town from San Antonio. Again, the woman kept the clerk busy and did not leave the store until the man had left.

The manager told the officer that 20 cartons of Marlboro cigarettes, each containing 10 packs, were missing from the cabinet.

Each pack of cigarettes had a price of $6.49. That brought the total loss to $1,298.

The security photo provided by Coastal Bend Crime Stoppers is not very clear, but it shows the male suspect walking into the store, apparently with the bag slung over his shoulder.

If anyone has any information that could lead to an arrest of the two suspects, the BPD would be interested in hearing it.

Witnesses also may contact the Coastal Bend Crime Stoppers at 362-0206, toll-free at (877) 362-0206, or online coastalbendcrimestoppers.com.

If the information provided leads to an arrest, the caller could receive a reward of up to $1,000.