Which deer? A New Jersey man had a fawn hidden in a bag outside this South Jersey supermarket.

A fawn surprised police in South Jersey last week when it appeared in a shopping bag carried by a man being questioned during a shoplifting investigation.

On June 1, Stafford Township police questioned Matthew Keithley, 23, of Mays Landing, outside the Manahawkin ShopRite on Route 72. Officers questioned him after a shoplifter was reported entering the store, police said.

When the fawn emerged from the reusable bag, Keithley ran from the officers who were trying to arrest him. He was quickly arrested, police said.

Officers searched Keithley and found he also had crack cocaine and drug paraphernalia, police said. He also lied about his identity during interrogation.

Keithley was wanted on Atlantic County warrants, police said. He was charged with unlawful possession of a deer, possession of a controlled dangerous substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, resisting arrest while fleeing and providing a false name to police.

Police told NJ Advance Media on Tuesday that Keithley has not been charged in the shoplifting investigation.

The deer was released into the wild in accordance with recommendations from the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife, police said.

Keithley was taken to the Ocean County Jail and remained held there Tuesday, records show. Contact information for his attorney, Yvonne G. Maher, could not be obtained by NJ Advance Media.

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Eric Conklin can be reached at [email protected].