Buster

Arrest Warrant Issued For Woman Nabbed In Brazen Crustacean Heist At Red Lobster

A judge today issued an arrest warrant for a woman accused of “removing and unnecessarily tormenting a live lobster from the tank” of a Florida seafood restaurant.

When Kimberly Gabel failed to show this afternoon for a pre-trial hearing at a Clearwater courthouse, a judge ordered the arrest of the 42-year-old.

Gabel was arrested in November for disorderly conduct after she allegedly caused a scene at a Red Lobster in St. Petersburg. A manager told police that he asked Gabel, seen at right, to leave the restaurant “for disturbing other customers.”

Before departing Red Lobster (seen below), Gabel allegedly “proceeded to reach into a water tank containing live lobster, grabbed a lobster and ran out of the restaurant,” according to a police report. When cops subsequently tracked down Gabel--who appeared intoxicated--she denied knowledge of the lobster’s whereabouts, adding that she “did not care because she did not do anything wrong.”

In a misdemeanor information filed last month, prosecutors accused Gabel of disorderly conduct, “to wit: removing and unnecessarily tormenting a live lobster from the tank of an establishment.”

By failing to show up in court, Gabel forfeited the $100 bond she posted following her bust. When apprehended on the failure to appear warrant, Gabel will have to post $513 to secure her release from the county jail, according to court records.