A Columbia Heights woman sped away from a Woodbury store with a cart full of stolen merchandise, leading officers on a high-speed chase that ended in Saint Paul, according to charges.

Cynthia Denise Elmore, 60, faces charges of fleeing a peace officer in a motor vehicle and theft of movable property without consent.

According to the complaint, on September 23, 2026, a Woodbury police officer saw a woman exit the JCPenney store in Woodbury with a cart full of unbagged merchandise. The woman, later identified as Elmore, began tossing items into a vehicle at a fast pace after spotting the officer. A store clerk told the officer that Elmore had entered the store with some items to exchange but left with more merchandise and never made a purchase.