Mistaken identity

Sears corporate officials have apologized to two police officers who were told to leave the retailer's store at a Des Moines mall because their uniforms distracted the store's security guards.

Officers Richard Glade and David Coy said they were kicked out of the Sears store in Merle Hay Mall in separate incidents this month.

"They told me that while I was in the store, I'd probably interfere with thefts they were monitoring," Coy said. "I said, 'Well, that's great.' She said, 'No, it's not,' and that they paid people to monitor that activity."

Kimberly Freely, a Sears spokeswoman at the company's headquarters in Hoffman Estates, Ill., described the episode as a case of mistaken identity.

"Our store management was attempting to address an ongoing issue of excessive socialization between mall security officers and store associates, which had been hampering associates' productivity," Freely said in a statement. "In no way was this an attempt to prevent on- or off-duty officers from shopping at our store."

Glade said he joined his wife at the store to buy a dishwasher when he was kicked out Monday. Glade said he asked for permission to take his morning break and went to Sears to help his wife shop.

"I don't think I was in the store for three minutes when I was asked to leave," he said.

"The guy was grinning the whole time he was asking me to leave. He said I was a deterrent to the store. Then he threw me out."

The Glades decided to buy the dishwasher elsewhere.