LIBERTY Police have a suspected shoplifter under arrest after they say he crashed his car on Tuesday morning near Belmont Avenue, knocking out power to more than 1,000 homes and businesses in the area.

The crash happened at Belmont and Colonial Drive around 9:30 a.m. as township police tried to stop a car fleeing from an alleged shoplifting incident at the local Walmart.

Dispatchers say the crash brought down utility poles and wires in the area, shutting down Colonial Drive.

According to FirstEnergy, 1,125 outages were reported in Liberty and Girard shortly before 10 a.m. The utility estimates that power will be fully restored at around noon today.

The suspect has been taken into custody.

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