Rochester woman facing felony theft charges after allegedly using child's stroller to conceal stolen items

Friday, July 10, 2026 at 11:28 AM

By Staff report

A Rochester woman was arrested on felony theft charges after she allegedly shoplifted in the presence of her children at a business.

Kayleen Van Nostrand, 28, of Rochester, was charged with Theft, where the defendant has a prior conviction for either theft or conversion, a Level 6 Felony.

According to court documents, an officer from the Rochester Police Department responded to call about a theft at Rochester Kroger on July 1, just after 9 a.m.. The manager on duty told the officer Van Nostrand had been shopping that morning when she was caught on camera stealing several items. The manager also noted Van Nostrand was known at the store by several of their employees for allegedly stealing during previous visits. The manager advised Van Nostrand had already left the store just before officers arrived.

Video footage revealed what appeared to be Van Nostrand with a stroller stealing several items, including a purple hair dying kit she took off the shelf before concealing the goods to take without purchasing. The manager later discovered an open, empty hair dye box found near the cosmetics aisle. Another unidentified female and two other children also appeared to be shopping with Van Nostrand during the time of the thefts.

Several other items were seen being placed from the cart and and concealing them in a compartment in the stroller while the women and children were shopping that could not be identified due to camera footage quality.

Later that day officers later made contact with Van Nostrand at her residence. While speaking with officers, Van Nostrand admitted to stealing at Kroger during his visit earlier that day and surrendered one throw blanket, three GC brand lip calms, and one unboxed hair color kit to police so they could be returned to the store. The items totaled to a value of $57.08.

It was also discovered Van Nostrand had a criminal history of theft that included her being convicted of a misdemeanor theft in Kosciusko County from 2021 and a pending case out of Fulton County for Theft with a Prior Conviction for Theft or Conversion from April 2026.

Van Nostrand was arrested July 1 and booked at the Fulton County Detention Center. An initial hearing on the case is set for July 14.