Two Syracuse women surrender after Ulta theft at Erie Boulevard store

DeWitt police said two Syracuse women turned themselves in after investigators linked them to a theft of more than $2,000 in cosmetics from the Ulta Beauty store at 3409 Erie Boulevard.

The stolen merchandise was valued at $2,152, police said, and the incident took place about 5:20 p.m. on April 30 at one of the town’s busiest retail addresses. Officers initially asked the public for help identifying the suspects from security camera images, a move that reflects how retail theft cases often move faster when shoppers and employees can provide names and leads.

Based on tips, police identified the women as Armani P. Hosea, 20, and Rahkeal J. Jones, 23, both of Syracuse. Authorities said both later surrendered and were issued appearance tickets, with court dates set for June 9, 2026, in DeWitt Court.

The case lands in a part of Onondaga County where retail crime has outsized visibility. DeWitt says the town covers about 37 square miles, borders Syracuse and is home to roughly 28,000 permanent residents, but its daytime and pass-through population tops 100,000. The town also has more than 30 hotels, three major highways, 11 schools and one college, making shopping districts along Erie Boulevard especially exposed to the kind of theft that can ripple through stores and parking lots alike.

Cosmetics retailers are frequent targets because the merchandise is compact, high-value and easy to resell. In cases like this, the immediate loss is not just the inventory on the shelf. Stores often respond with tighter security, more camera coverage and closer employee monitoring, changes that can be noticeable to customers shopping for routine items and can affect the feel of a normal visit.

New York’s appearance-ticket law generally allows officers to issue a written notice to appear in local criminal court instead of making an immediate jail booking in lower-level cases. In DeWitt, that means the matter now moves into court, where the theft allegation can be addressed without disappearing after the identification step.

The department’s public request also showed how quickly a short-term search can end once image-based tips start coming in. In this case, the clothing descriptions, one suspect in a black jacket, gray sweatpants and Crocs, the other in a black jacket, white sweatpants, glasses and Ugg boots, helped narrow the field until police had names and the women surrendered.