Penny for Her Thoughts: Shoplifting Called Out

By Penelope Griffiths

What does “shoplifting” mean? There are many different takes on this; for instance, the person doing the shoplifting is just “shopping” for things he or she wants but doesn’t intend to pay for (or can’t). These things could range from essential items such as soap, toothpaste, and food to the “luxury” items like electric toothbrushes, curling irons, razor blades – some makes are very expensive!
    To the retailer it’s a cost issue, because every item shoplifted has to be accounted for and can lead to financial loss and even to closure if it’s a major issue.
    To the store staff it’s either not important and they ignore it (except for doing the “corporate” reporting, etc.), or it’s a serious offence and a matter of “right vs wrong.”
    I fit the latter staff profile. To me, “shoplifting” for whatever reason is a crime. It’s theft. It’s a moral issue of right vs wrong. Now, don’t get me wrong. I have a lot of empathy for people down on their luck through no fault of their own – something that seems to be abundant in certain areas, judging by the panhandlers at all of their corners. If someone is struggling to pay for their few essentials, I will often supplement them myself. After all, 25 cents or a dollar to me – someone who is working and comfortably off – can make a huge difference to a “broke” person’s health, mental well-being, or diet.

Well...you can imagine

I have worked at my front-end cashiers job for four years now and have experienced many of these thefts, mostly all undertaken sneakily – until this year. The “customer” walks several times down the aisle he or she intends to steal from, and then, looking around (but often forgetting the cameras!), takes an item and stuffs it in their bag or coat or down their pants or in their bra or…well, you can imagine.
    Sometimes the theft is noticed only when a gaping hole on the shelf cries out and the cameras are checked! Other times the person has been noticed on previous “shopping” trips and is followed and asked, “Do you need any help?” –whereupon he or she usually, but not always, leaves.
    The ones who are “professional,” though, will stare at you and decline your help or even challenge you with, “I haven’t taken anything!” or “Why are you following me?” – sure signs they are up to no good, as my experience has proven.
    Now, I said “until this year,” because their modus operandi has changed. They no longer hide the fact that they’re taking an item without paying. They know that the corporate rules say staff should not approach, chase, or try to apprehend a thief. Indeed, we are supposed to alert the manager, who will call the police to apprehend the thief –while the thief is still in the store, because otherwise it’s almost impossible to take any legal action.
    There are valid reasons for this approach, of course. The person of interest could become violent and hurt the confronting staff member, or even the reverse could happen. Legally they need to be caught “red-handed” with the goods hidden about their person so that they can be “trespassed” from the store and arrested, etc. However, the corporate rules are seriously flawed in favor of the shoplifter – and shoplifters know it.
    I work behind a 10-foot-long counter, and I am 99% of the time the only one there. In order to call my manager I need to either put a call out over the system or ring the office – both of which take a lot longer than the thief needs to take something and leave. If I get my alert to the manager while the shoplifter is still in the store, the manager still has to call the police, and they have to dispatch someone, etc. All of that takes at least 20 minutes, and usually a lot longer, by which time the shoplifter is long gone.
    Yes, the police can review the camera footage and possibly apprehend the suspect, but the chances of successfully prosecuting them for theft are small. The usual outcome is that they are apprehended and told not to enter the store again or they will be arrested for trespassing. It works for some, but not for many, as I’ve witnessed many times.

One “gentleman” laughed in my face

One “gentleman” has entered the store I work in every month and actually laughs in my face as he leaves with his bounty. Now, I’m not sure why, but I decided I’d had enough.
    One Saturday, as I was opening the store, this man came in, went to the snack aisle, took a packet of Ritz Crackers, and then went to the beer aisle and started taking beers. When I approached him and told him to put them back because it was wrong, he at first hesitated but then left the beer and handed me the Ritz Crackers. His eyes were hazy – he was probably “on something” – and I told him if he was hungry I was “outing” some food that he could have, because otherwise I would just trash it.
    Something seemed to stir inside him, because he became angry and told me he could afford his stuff. I told him that I was pleased about that. He then took a packet of chips, returned to the fridge, and grabbed a six-pack before heading to the front of the store. I followed at a reasonable distance, stupidly assuming he was going to pay. As I was going behind the counter, he just kept walking towards the door. I followed, telling him not to leave without paying, but he ignored me, and I called out to him not to come in again, he was a thief and bad person. But he didn’t stop, he sailed right on out.
    I rang and also put out a call to my manager, but it was a whole 30 minutes before someone rang down to me. I related what had happened only to be told that they wouldn’t call the police, because it was only a small amount and the thief was long gone. That response did not sit well with me, but I had to accept it and got on with my day. I knew that this shoplifter would be back, because he knew he could get away with.
    Sure enough, he returned the very next week. This time it was 10 a.m., when a few customers and two supervisors were on the shop floor. Everyone on the staff (and possibly some of the customers) knew about the event and what this man looked like, but no one moved.
    I had just finished serving a customer when he started walking past. I called to him with “Excuse me, sir, but you’re not allowed in the store. Please leave.”

He stopped dead in his tracks

    He stopped dead in his tracks, and my two work colleagues popped their heads out from the aisle they were working on and looked in my direction.
    The man started to turn around but changed his mind and defiantly started moving forward again. I got out from behind the counter and stood facing him, about 3 feet away. His eyes were clear and staring right at me.
    I repeated my request and he turned and started walking out. But then something seemed to change his mind. Now, I don’t know whether it was because he realized other people were there watching or he thought he could just do his thieving with no consequences, but he turned and started yelling at me, saying I was a f**king this and that, that I was disrespectful, etc. etc.
    I stood my ground and repeated my request. And then I told him we could do this the easy way or the hard way, and I admitted that I might indeed be all of the things he said, but the one thing I wasn’t was what he was: a thief.
    At this, he backed down and walked out, muttering under his breath. And he has not been back.
    I returned to serving customers, but a hush had descended on the store…until one of the customers started clapping. Yes, actually applauded!
    My work mates were still standing there with eyes wide open and mouths gaping. I had not broken any rules but had successfully dealt with a known thief. We notified the police of the incident, and they acknowledged knowing the individual and spoke to him, so hopefully I’m done with him.

Their gall is unreal

The gall of these in-your-face shoplifters is unreal. One guy actually brought a cart into the store with a large shopping bag open in it and proceeded to shop from a list. I immediately called my supervisor to the front and alerted him what was going on. Just then the guy started heading for the door, and I called out to him to pay for his wares.
    He told me that everything in his bag was from another store. I requested to see his receipt so I could check, and I told him that I had watched him taking named items from our shelves.
    At this, he started shouting that he wanted to speak to the manager, who was already there by then. When he realized that none of us were buying his story, he literally ran out of the store with the cart in tow. The police found him up the road 20 minutes later, cart and goods still in his possession.

I could tell more tales

There are so many tales like these that I could tell, and that’s why I’ve had enough and am no longer staying quiet. Yes, I’m aware that some of these shoplifters could retaliate someday, but I would rather stand up for what is right and face their retaliation than hide in “fear” and cower down to their wrong-doings.
    It does, however, appear that my reputation has spread, because a worker from a store at a nearby mall was overheard talking about the Welsh woman who calls out shoplifters.
    I am aware that guns are abundant in this country, but I also know what useless aims most people have, so I keep my distance from them. Plus, bullets are expensive….
    See, something…something seems to be working – for now.

Copyright © 2022 by Penelope Griffiths