[willa]

Yesterday i was in WHSmith's and i saw a Lady put 3 Packets of Chewing Gum into her coat pocket ! I was so shocked i just stood there and watched, she then proceeded to without being seen rip the the barcode off the packagings. Then walked out like nothing had happened.

I was about to say something to her, but then thought better of it, incase she went for me ! lmao

I know it's only Chewing Gum, but it's STEALING, and feel stupid i didn't do anything about it.

Would all u guys have told the shopkeeper ?

 

[Guest]

I saw someone.steal a pizza once so told security. I wouldn't confront as you never know what the person is carrying (weapons etc) or what they could do.

 

[SnazzyJazzy]

i wouldnt have done anything lol i dont like confrontation.

 

[Tigerneko]

I saw someone.steal a pizza once so told security. I wouldn't confront as you never know what the person is carrying (weapons etc) or what they could do.

How on earth did they steal a pizza :blink:

I don't know why the woman felt the need to rip the barcode off in the shop, barcodes don't set off alarms!

Anyway, I probably wouldn't have said anything for a packet of chewing gum, although i'd have been tempted to follow her and see if she was making her way around town on a theiving mission, then perhaps say something!

 

[simplysardonic]

I'd say something, very loudly, IF I saw something (I'm not known for my powers of observation!). Stealing is stealing & shoplifting has a knock-on effect on price that us honest consumers end up paying for

 

[Mese]

I would have said something , not that it would have done any good in all probability as people who steal have no morals obviously , so all she would care about is not being caught by the shop owner and wouldnt give a hoot that a member of the public saw her

 

[Bisbow]

My mother once saw a lady taking eggs out of the box and putting them in her large pocket. Mum waited until she had done and pushed her trolley into her side.
She started to shout at mum until mum told her she would now have scambled eggs if she went near a heater. She scuttled off in a hurry

 

[Wiz201]

I saw two ladies parked up in a mother and baby parking spot at a supermarket, they were elderly but didn't have mobility problems or anything. I'm not sure that's right but I just let it go.

 

[Zayna]

I would mention it to a staff member. That person might make a habit of stealing items so they should be made aware.

 

[Guest]

How on earth did they steal a pizza :blink:

I don't know why the woman felt the need to rip the barcode off in the shop, barcodes don't set off alarms!

Anyway, I probably wouldn't have said anything for a packet of chewing gum, although i'd have been tempted to follow her and see if she was making her way around town on a theiving mission, then perhaps say something!

It was in tesco and they just popped it into their bag and then i saw them walk out.

 

[ginge2804]

I dunoo what I would do
Im so shy that I would deffo not wana say anythin to the person, and don't no if id say anythin to staff either...

I no id feel eternaly guilty tho if I did nothin...

 

[redroses2106]

hmm you know I probably wouldn't say anything mostly just incase I was wrong, also if I seen someone steal food I would be worried that it was because they were poor and had no money for it so wouldn't say anything either. I'm pretty oblivious to everything going on around me though so doubt the issue will ever arise.

 

[Tigerneko]

Ok people, how about this one -

You are in the same sort of situation and you see someone stealing some chocolate bars. However, this person clearly has Downs Syndrome. What would you do then?

I ask this because it once happened to my ex (who co-incidentally also works in WHS), he told his manager because he saw the man stealing the chocolate so had to do something about it. His manager decided to treat him no differently to any other shoplifter and called the police. The man was upset, he was crying and he apologised for what he had done, but when the store manager asked him if he wasn't going to do it again, he said he didn't know, so the manager decided to bar him from the shop.

Is this too harsh, or do you think the manager was right to treat the downs syndrome man the same as anyone else? Just to add, the man did have a 'carer' with him, but he obviously wasn't watching him as closely as he should have been. The disabled man was also a regular customer to the shop and used to visit every day, but this was the first time they'd actually known him to steal anything. (not to say that he hasn't been doing it every day previously!)

I would be interested to hear other peoples opinions on this, I suspect there may be a big divide!

 

[simplysardonic]

I would still say something as it is still stealing, TBH the carer should have been paying more attention, especially if his charge had a limited understanding of the concept of right & wrong.

 

[GoldenShadow]

Working in retail we are very grateful if customers take their time to inform us if they see shop lifting. We will go through CCTV and find the person then show all our customer assistants and kick out said person if they ever set foot in our shop again.

If someone with Down's syndrome or a similar disability were to steal we would most likely attempt to contact an appropriate adult else first. Depends what they're nicking etc. we've had a seven year old nick stuff before and the store manager has made the kid get his mobile out and rung his Mum off it, lol.

 

[pogo]

yes and i have done before.

I tend to ask very loudly 'are you going to pay for that?' or something along those lines.

I love a good confrontation so i'm quite happy to dob them in!

 

[simplysardonic]

yes and i have done before.

I tend to ask very loudly 'are you going to pay for that?' or something along those lines.

I love a good confrontation so i'm quite happy to dob them in!

I really don't like confrontation & am a complete wuss, but if something makes me angry enough I can't help but say or do something about it got me in trouble more than a few times

 

[Waterlily]

My mother once saw a lady taking eggs out of the box and putting them in her large pocket. Mum waited until she had done and pushed her trolley into her side.
She started to shout at mum until mum told her she would now have scambled eggs if she went near a heater. She scuttled off in a hurry

LOL I like your mum
I wouldnt have said anything to her, i'd have gone unnoticed and told someone working there, and walked off like I didnt do anything :tongue_smilie:

 

[GoldenShadow]

Some old git conned me out of £10 swearing down I hadn't given it to him. CCTV showed he had put it in his pocket. There was a queue of people behind him I wish someone had seen and said something. If he is ever stupid enough to come in again he will get kicked out. How bad is this we can't even print an image of someone off the CCTV and put it in the staff room for people to see because its against their rights, even if we have video evidence of them thieving or a abusing staff. So hence we pause CCTV and show all the CA's the baddies on there.

 

[8tansox]

Nope, I wouldn't.

I once watched a very clever thief at work in Boots. I was standing at the Clinique counter and there was a kerfuffle at the door, the alarm sounded and quick as a flash, I noticed a woman hand something to her friend, who was standing outside with a toddler in a pram, the first woman came back into the shop holding something in-front of her at arms length, saying she was sorry, she didn't realise she still had it in her hand, put in on the counter and left. The Clinique assistant and myself stood and watched them both outside looking and checking their ill-gotten gains and the assistant called security....

The other thing thieves do too, the expensive lotions and creams that Boots have on their counters, they empty them into ordinary containers, walk out the shop with hundreds of pounds of make-up but never set alarms off as the containers they take the stuff out in, is not tagged obviously.

Crafty little blighters aren't they!!