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The family got me out of the house, for a short jaunt around the ol' burg, one of and the last stops was at good ol' Wally World (Wal-Mart), upon arrival and before I got of the car the action started, a young gent approx 20-25 years of age came strolling out of the store with a cart and a 32-40 in it, I thought well someones got a new boob tube, he was followed about 10 secs later by a store manager and 3-4 other personnel, at which time he went into a dash, then it came to me, UH OH I think he didn't stop and pay for it, that was the main act of Moronic activity, #2, he tossed the item into a car and then slowly pulled away and out of the parking lot, with the wal mart people watching and cell phone cameras clicking away, all the while others appeared to be in contact with LE and passing on a description of the get away vehicle, with the license plate numbers. OK first it's totally idiotic to steal something in a large dept store these days as they have CCTV security cameras in all locations where theft/shoplifting is likely to occur, though a TV isn't likely to be lifted there are numerous other items in that area that are. I don't know the setup of Wal mart, however in others I have worked and installed alarm/CCTV systems; they have you framed in certain areas of merchandise, Registers, and coming in and going out. Did he not realize that they have 3-4 ways of finding out who he is, and he will very likely be seeing uniformed members of the local LE bureau before midnight strikes on the clock.

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And what part surprises you? Seriously.

Likely explanation: His inability to recognize that sauntering out of the store with unpaid merchandise THAT LARGE would not be noticed is a good indicator that he didn't recognize his leisurely "getaway" would be similarly unsuccessful.

Cheeky explanation: He wanted the city/county/state to provide him with, um, room and board.

Edited by dnl42
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I've noticed Walmarts are installing CCTV cameras right at the exit door st about eye level. When Ifirst seen it, it reminded me of how 7Elevens have the verticle measuring tapes on their doors for identification of thieves.

I'm sure with all the info provided to the local LEOs, he'll be caught.

-Gregg

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About a two or three years ago an idiot decided to grab a flat screen tv that was on display near the exit. He grabbed the TV an used it to hit the greeter(an older lady), in the face on the way out. He then proceeded to jump in a big white van that he had left running by the door and took off. The van happened to be his work van that was covered with the name of the company that he worked for. The police were able to catch him a few miles from the store.

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OK the guy I referred to in the OP looked like your average citizen shopping at Wal-Mart, but what is Joseph Randle's,excuse; he's a highly paid professional athlete, when I say highly paid, I say it because the rookies drafted in the lower rounds are guaranteed $400K+, and veteran players more than that, which is far above the average salary/wages made my your average working Joe; so why shoplift...it boggles the mind....Most folks making that kind of money I think would consider shoplifting beneath their dignity, unless they're kleptomaniacs. The Lucky/Savon combo stores we did had an average of 32-48 cameras depending on the crime stats of the local area, which include 5 PTZ (pan, tilt, zoom) with a given lens can read the time on a wristwatch from 40' away I know because I used to assemble and test the units.

Edited by #1 Greywolf
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The Hilo, Hawaii Target Store has a Starbucks at the front of the store. One evening I was sitting there sipping my drink watching people coming and going when I noticed a young couple coming in, the fellow pushing a stroller with a toddler in it, the gal wearing a very,very short dress. She had very nice legs, I couldn't help but notice. Awhile later I saw the same couple leave, only now she was wearing blue jeans under the skirt. I quickly ran and told a manager, and rather than pursue them he went the other way. So I went outside and photographed them with my cellphone getting in their car. I went back in the store, and saw the manager. He told me he'd reviewed the security camera video and confirmed she'd stolen the jeans, and mentioned he knew the couple personally. He said he'd have a little chat with them but I wonder if they had any consequences at all.

Edited by Scott R Wilson
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Meh, I am not surprised. You can't fix stupid. Despite all the tech available to stores and other establishments to thwart thieves, and despite the fact that almost everyone now carries a camera on them via their phones there will always be people who think they can get away with it. Some do but they eventually get caught. My buddy is in LE and some of the things people get caught stealing boggles the mind.

Cheers!

Don.

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Here's one for you:

The LHS owner tells me that he caught a shoplifter. This guy was young and loud - also a very red ginger. You couldn't miss him if you tried. During a busy saturday he was all over the store - apparently in the front, the back... back and forth. What he was doing was slowly 'moving' a model from the back of the store to the front entrance. Bit by bit... just moving it from shelf to shelf when the owner/staff were not looking. I suppose the idea was that at the last minute he would just leave the store and shove it under his arm as he left.

Here's the problem - the guy was both dumb and greedy.... it was an Academy 1/32 jet. Big conspicuous box. Staff caught him on one of the last 'moves' where he put the massive box in with some kiddie puzzles. He was then required to leave and never come back. They suspected him of "repricing" some models too.

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Unfortunately stupidity of this magnitude is not uncommon. A couple of years ago, we had one store (who shall remain nameless) who stocked flat screen TV's after the check out points and near the front doors. It wasn't uncommon for us to respond once or twice a day for thefts of these TV's. They finally learned but they still stock all kinds of other merchandise in a similar fashion where the TV's were. They have a large display area between a set of doors leading to the parking lot and another set of doors into the store proper (like a large vestibule). You can't fix that kind of stupid. They just factor the cost of the losses into their pricing.

Liquor stores have a policy of not chasing thieves out of the store. They have cameras right at the entrance and exit. Even if they see someone secreting bottles into bags or pockets or purses or backpacks, they are instructed by head office not to confront the thieves. Let them take the product and then call police. Wonder why booze prices are getting so high?!

Drug stores are getting hit pretty hard for perfume and after shave. It isn't for personal hygiene. I guess some people prefer the taste of White Diamonds and Chanel No.5 over Crown Royal or Grey Goose. Again, many drug stores have great camera systems at the front doors. Staff are instructed not to confront or follow thieves inside or outside the store. Let them go and call the police.

On the other end of the spectrum, there are stores like WalMart, Canadian Tire, Home Depot, Lowes, Rona, and many small mom and pop operations, like CM alluded to in his post, that take on thieves and fraudsters with great gusto. Unfortunately, usually the only time anyone calls the police around here when a theft is in progress, is when they see a 'fight in the parking lot and two guys are beating up on some other guy'. When we get there, it's the loss prevention officers trying to arrest and handcuff someone who has committed a theft from their store and they got caught and will have to suffer the consequences of their actions. It is an EXTREMELY rare occasion where Joe. Q. Public helps out an LPO in a situation like that. They just don't want to get involved. I will say that it is still refreshing that the average citizen will come to the aid of a fellow officer if the bad guys look like they have the upper hand.

Unfortunately you will never stop this type of behaviour.

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Two days ago I was at a different super than the usual and I saw they had the bags of saffron near the counter, locked under slabs of clear plastic. Apparently people steal them. I can understand - though not condone - stealing some big-money item if you can't afford it otherwise, but 4€ worth of a tasteless spice? I don't get it.

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"Liquor stores have a policy of not chasing thieves out of the store. They have cameras right at the entrance and exit. Even if they see someone secreting bottles into bags or pockets or purses or backpacks, they are instructed by head office not to confront the thieves. Let them take the product and then call police. Wonder why booze prices are getting so high?!"

Maybe they have that policy because a lot of liquor store robbers are armed? Better lost bottles than lost life.

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Maybe they have that policy because a lot of liquor store robbers are armed? Better lost bottles than lost life.

With all due respect, in our parts, that is an extremely rare circumstance. It's more often than not that the perpetrator is armed with nothing more than bravado and a desire to get in, grab a couple of bottles and get out as quickly as possible. Where I police, actual armed robberies at a liquor store are as rare as hen's teeth. Many more thefts than robberies.

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Two days ago I was at a different super than the usual and I saw they had the bags of saffron near the counter, locked under slabs of clear plastic. Apparently people steal them. I can understand - though not condone - stealing some big-money item if you can't afford it otherwise, but 4€ worth of a tasteless spice? I don't get it.

Yeah, you don't get it. Saffron is one of the most expensive food items on the planet. Retail is anywhere from 1500-4000 USD per pound depending on quality. Even poor quality saffron is very expensive and top quality is stratospheric in price. And it's definitely not tasteless...

John Hairell (tpn18@yahoo.com)

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There was a story I ready recently, where a couple was arrested after stealing 47 blocks of cheese from a Walmart....

Were they mice...? :blink: 47 blocks of cheese...that's one HUGE fondue... :lol:

People are crazy.

:cheers:

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Yeah, you don't get it. Saffron is one of the most expensive food items on the planet. Retail is anywhere from 1500-4000 USD per pound depending on quality. Even poor quality saffron is very expensive and top quality is stratospheric in price. And it's definitely not tasteless...

John Hairell (tpn18@yahoo.com)

I know saffron is expensive, however, the way it is packaged, you'd have to grab a dozen bags to get the monetary equivalent of a prepaid gift card. If I were a shoplifter I'd go for the gift card. As per the tasteless, we'll have to agree to disagree...

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A few years ago a couple of not-so-bright lads robbed an armored car in front of a local WalMart. Unfortunately for them there was a busload of Japanese tourists in the parking lot. Armed with a bazillion photos the police had no trouble identifying the suspects when they caught up with them at a local car dealer a few miles away where they were attempting to pay cash for a new Cadillac SUV.....

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A few years ago a couple of not-so-bright lads robbed an armored car in front of a local WalMart. Unfortunately for them there was a busload of Japanese tourists in the parking lot. Armed with a bazillion photos the police had no trouble identifying the suspects when they caught up with them at a local car dealer a few miles away where they were attempting to pay cash for a new Cadillac SUV.....

Unless this is a direct recollection, these FOAF (friend of a friend) stories are usually apocryphal. Google helped me find this 1991 story from Arlington, TX, which is close, but no Walmart, no Cadillac...

Edited by dnl42
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Unless this is a direct recollection, these FOAF (friend of a friend) stories are usually apocryphal. Google helped me find this 1991 story from Arlington, TX, which is close, but no Walmart, no Cadillac...

Not apocryphal, I lived less than half a mile from the store (actually a HyperMart, a 'super' WalMart) at the time. I even heard the police sirens. The store was at the corner of Cooper and Bardin in south Arlington, just south of I-20. I moved from that area in 1994.

I did some searching of my own and, 24 years later, I did remember some facts incorrectly. They bought a Chrysler (not an Cadillac) with some of the cash and were arrested at a relative's home in Dallas (not at the dealership) with the Chrysler in the driveway.

http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=19910503&slug=1280964

This incident pre-dated digital cameras - the police had the tourist's film developed and prints made at the one-hour photo kiosk inside the HyperMart.

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I know saffron is expensive, however, the way it is packaged, you'd have to grab a dozen bags to get the monetary equivalent of a prepaid gift card. If I were a shoplifter I'd go for the gift card. As per the tasteless, we'll have to agree to disagree...

I see your point, although I've never seen saffron sold in such small quantities as your are talking about. There would be very few retail outlets that would have saffron laying around in single quantities of a pound or more and waiting to be snatched up.

As far as taste, I wonder if the minute quantities you are talking about are the reason why. If you don't have enough to flavor anything...:-)

John Hairell (tpn18@yahoo.com)

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