On February 28, 1991, she entered a video store, produced a pellet gun, and demanded the money in the cash register. The clerk called 9-1-1 and said, "I've just been robbed by the girl who played Kimberly on "Diff'rent Strokes"." Approximately 15 minutes after the robbery, Plato returned to the scene and was immediately arrested. Plato had stolen $164. Las Vegas entertainer Wayne Newton posted her $13,000 bail, and Plato was given five years' probation. Plato made headlines and became a subject of the national debate surrounding troubled child stars, particularly given the difficulties of her "Diff'rent Strokes" co-stars Gary Coleman and Todd Bridges. In January 1992, she was arrested again, this time for forging a prescription for diazepam. She served 30 days in jail for violating the terms of her probation and immediately entered a drug rehabilitation program.