Police say woman staged 1999 armed robbery

KITTERY – A South Berwick woman has been charged with staging an armed robbery in November 1999.

Mary Wheeler, 26, confessed to the sham on Monday, according to Detective Steve Hamel.

Hamel said Wheeler told police she had been robbed by a white male while she was working alone at Bag Makers Factory Outlet Store on Route 1 in Kittery. About $2,000 was stolen.

“She’s been a suspect from the beginning, and all leads directed us back to the same conclusion,” Hamel said.

Police arrested Jeffrey Dale, 25, of Dover, N.H., last year for helping Wheeler stage the robbery. He was charged with theft and conspiracy to commit theft.

Wheeler has been charged with theft and filing a false report to a police officer.