There simply aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done that you need to, right? Maybe that’s why a man who was keeping an eye on an acquaintance’s 11-year-old brought the boy with him to a Pennsylvania Walmart to pick up some tools. Police say that he walked out of the store without paying for the tools, leaving the boy behind. [More]
shoplifters
Woman Who Stuffed Electronics Inside Her Skirt Returns To Same RadioShack Store, Does It Again
By 2.5.16
Last spring, a woman wearing a full-skirted dress walked into a RadioShack store in Florida and used the garment to conceal electronics with a retail value of more than $1,100. That was no one-time crime of opportunity, it turns out: people who appear to be the same woman and her male companion were spotted on camera again at the same store, though the items this time were lower value. [More]
Shoplifting Suspects Back Into Kohl’s Security Guard, Customer’s Stroller
By 12.9.15
Two suspected shoplifters at a Kohl’s store near Pittsburgh were trying to flee the parking lot and back out of their parking space, and did something that they probably didn’t intend: they backed the vehicle into a store security guard who had pursued them into the parking lot…then into a stroller that contained a 3-year-old and a 6-week-old. [More]
Lawsuit Claims Macy’s Detains Minorities In Shoplifting Cells, Makes Them Pay Bogus Fines
By 12.4.15
More than a year after Macy’s agreed to pay $650K to settle allegations of racial profiling in its stores and promised it would incorporate more staff training to combat such behavior, a woman has filed a class-action lawsuit against the department store, claiming it unfairly detains minority shoppers and puts them in holding cells, whether they’ve done anything wrong or not. On top of that, the complaint claims, Macy’s then extorts those people for bogus fines. [More]
Police: Women Steal TV From Walmart, Change Clothes And Steal Another One
By 9.28.15
Earlier this month, a man masquerading as a Walmart employee walked in the door, grabbed four big screen TVs and simply walked back out the way he came. While that was no doubt a brazen shoplifting incident, two women may have topped him over the weekend: police say the women swiped one TV from a local store, changed their clothing and then stole another TV — from the same store.
[More]
Disingenuous Shoplifting Suspects Claim They Misunderstood “Tax-Free Holiday” Concept
By 8.5.15
During back-to-school season, some municipalities have tax holidays, where sales tax isn’t charged on clothing purchases. Georgia is holding one right now, and some shoppers took advantage of the holiday to… pretend that they didn’t understand that the term doesn’t mean “grab everything you can and run out of the store.” [More]
Shoplifting Suspect Bites Target Security Officer On The Arm
By 7.9.15
Retail security officers, maybe you should consider a series of rabies shots. A few weeks ago, we shared the story of an alleged Macy’s shoplifter who chomped on a police officer who showed up to intervene. Now police in the Denver suburb of Aurora are looking for a woman who was suspected of shoplifting, and chomped on the forearm of a Target employee while making her escape. [More]
Shoplifters Spotted Shoving Hamburgers Down Pants
By 6.18.15
Two men in Texas California were sort of shuffling around a supermarket without purchasing anything. One of the men was wearing very baggy pants, and store employees later told police that it was obvious something had been shoved inside his trousers. When the staff confronted him, his pants fell down, revealing ill-gotten hamburgers. [More]
Shoplifting Suspect Wearing ‘Won’t Be Caught’ T-Shirt Remains At Large
By 4.29.15
The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office in Florida want to make sure that the prediction made on a woman’s t-shirt doesn’t come true. The message in huge white letters on her black t-shirt was clear: “Won’t Be Caught,” it said. Unfortunately, she was caught on camera while allegedly scooping up almost $1,500 worth of perfume and cologne bottle at an Ulta store in Tampa. [More]
Shoplifter Arrested After Shoving Steak Down His Pants
By 3.17.15
A 53-year-old man in Arkansas was arrested last week for shoplifting. His crime was one that has long fascinated us here at Consumerist: he is accused of trying to steal steaks from a Food Giant grocery store by shoving them down his pants. While this might seem like a logical and delicious enough crime, it’s also kind of a noticeable one. Also, no one will want to eat the meat. [More]
Police: Man Faked Heart Attack At Walmart While Pal Took Off With Cart Full Of Toys
By 12.18.14
You’re shopping or working at Walmart when a young man collapses in front of you, showing signs of a heart attack. What do you do? You tend to the victim, because you are a human being with a soul. However, police say when this happened in Florida, two men took advantage of the functioning souls of the people around them to steal a cart filled with toys. [More]
Why Do Criminals Love This Walmart So Much?
By 7.31.14
The Walmart on State Route 436 in Casselberry, Florida is very popular. Unfortunately, it’s popular with a demographic that retailers don’t want to attract: criminals. Specifically, shoplifters. Some very talented shoplifters, like the man who allegedly removed 18 televisions from the store while dressed as a woman. [More]
Topless Macy’s Shoplifter Puts On A Shirt, Turns Herself In
By 7.29.14
The department stores of California can rest easy: the woman who lost half of her clothing and her purse in a scuffle with Macy’s store security last week before fleeing the store and driving off has turned herself in. Police had her purse and identification, and an onlooker also wrote down her license plate number, so her identity and whereabouts were not exactly a mystery. She has been released on $20,000 bail. [San Marino Tribune] [More]
Shoplifter Tries To Steal From Macy’s, Leaves Shirt, Bra, And Purse Behind
By 7.21.14
The woman suspected of shoplifting last night at a Macy’s store in California may be a little confused about how this whole “shoplifting” thing works. Police say that a loss prevention officer spotted the woman slipping items into her purse, and tried to detain her. Her shirt and bra came off during the altercation, and she fled the mall topless. [More]
Yet Another Shoplifter Busted For Allegedly Stuffing Seafood Down Her Pants
By 6.13.14
What is it about people stealing seafood from stores by way of stuffing it down their pants? Because when I think of a prime environment for fruits of the sea, it is not a cramped, stuffy hot pants space. Nevertheless, yet another bad consumer has been accused of pilfering seafood, this time by allegedly shoving seven frozen lobster tails down her pants. [More]
Macy’s Security Guard Accused Of Running Shoplifting Ring
By 12.11.13
A 23-year-old Massachusetts man who had recently started work as a security guard at Macy’s has been accused of doing the exact opposite of his job description. Police say that the guard and three accomplices, including his younger brother, tried to steal 83 items worth a total of $4,800 at current holiday-sale prices. [More]
Cops Shoot Alleged Thanksgiving Night Shoplifter Dragging Officer With Car
By 11.29.13
Some Black Friday shoppers brawl over discounted junk, and some people aren’t interested in paying those discounted prices at all. Not because they’re staying home: don’t be ridiculous. Brown Thursday turned dangerous in Illinois when a police officer shot an accused shoplifter. For shoplifting? No, for dragging a fellow officer whose arm was stuck in his car door. [More]
Police: Shoplifter Shoved Steak And Seafood Down Pants
By 10.18.13
Employees of a Price Chopper in Troy, N.Y. noticed something kind of strange in the wee hours of the morning: a customer stuffed steak and seafood in his pants, then walked out of the store. Police followed the man on a four-block car chase with lights and sirens, ultimately capturing him and the meats when he drove into a pole. [More]
