Face Mask Dispute Lands Man in Jail

La Grange Police arrested a local man for theft following a dispute over face masks at a gas station last Tuesday, May 5.

According to La Grange Police Chief David Gilbreath, a clerk at the Bar G Exxon in La Grange called police around 8:03 p.m. after a man grabbed a bunch of face masks that were for sale on the counter and walked out of the store. Officer John Wostarek responded and located the suspect, 40-year-old Gene Webster of La Grange.

Webster told Wostarek that he was upset that the store was selling the masks and not giving them away to the public for their safety during the coronavirus pandemic. Gilbreath said Webster took all of the face masks to prevent the store from selling them.

Bar G Exxon was selling blue surgical-style face masks for $2.77 each when the Record visited the store last Friday.

Wostarek searched Webster for weapons and located a bag of marijuana in Webster’s front pocket. Wostarek arrested Webster for class c misdemeanor theft and possession of marijauana. Webster was transported and booked into the Fayette County Jail on those charges.