We already know that meat is the product of choice for many shoplifters and that more often than not that particular kind of theft involves the meat being shoved down one’s pants. But a new development in meat-centric thefts occurred this week when a man allegedly tried to steal several rib-eye steaks by sitting on them. [More]
theft
Attempting To Steal Steaks From Walmart By Sitting On Them Only Leads To Your Arrest And Really Flat Steaks
By 11.19.14
Asian Restaurant Would Really Like Its 800-Pound Wok Back
By 8.21.14
If someone tries to sell you an 800-pound wok, the police in Wichita, Kansas would like to hear about it. The Associated Press reports that earlier this week, the massive piece of cookware was stolen from the Bamboo Express Asian Cuisine restaurant while it was sitting outside. Moving the wok most likely required more than one person, and police could really use some leads. [Associated Press] (Thanks, Derek!) [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]
Terrible Person Steals Jar Of Donations For The Jimmy Fund
By 6.17.14
Stealing a tip jar is pretty low, but do you know what’s even lower? Stealing a donation jar. Possibly even lower than that is stealing a donation jar for children. Children with cancer. Yet someone in Massachusetts did just that, stealing a jar of donations for the Jimmy Fund from a bar. [More]
Organization Promising Fraud Protection Scams $20 Million From Senior Citizens
By 3.31.14
Scamming people is wrong. Scamming senior citizens is immoral, disrespectful, and a number of other adjectives. Still, there are companies in the world that prey on the elderly. The Federal Trade Commission has put a stop to one such organizations that bilked more than $20 million from seniors. [More]
Anti-Theft Kill Switch For Smartphones Could Save Consumers $2.6 Billion A Year
By 3.31.14
Smartphones are a popular target for thieves, in fact nearly 1.6 million phones were stolen in the United States in 2012. The anger knowing that you’ll have to shell out big bucks to replace it is almost comparable to the feeling of helplessness and rage one feels after having their trusty phone snatched away in the first place. But one simple change to all smartphones could lessen those feeling and keep $2.6 billion in consumers’ collective pockets. [More]
Returning Stuff You Didn’t Buy From Kohl’s For Cash Won’t Go Over Well
By 3.31.14
While we applaud creativity in many endeavors, ripping off a store with a bit of trickery just to get some cash out of the deal is a no-no, clever though it might be. Or in the case of a man accused of scamming a Kohl’s store in St. Louis out of some cash, it’s only a matter of time before your ruse is spoiled. [More]
Police: Headphone Thieves Dressed Up As Target Workers, Choked Employee
By 2.12.14
If you saw someone at Target wearing a red shirt and khakis, would you pay attention to what they were carrying? Probably not, since they’d just appear to be hard-working employees. According to police, that’s how two men were able to infiltrate a Colorado Target store, steal pricey headphones, and escape through an emergency exit. [More]
Before Handing Over $9,000, Make Sure TV Salesman Really Works At Sears
By 2.4.14
When someone approaches you with a deal that seems irresistible, sometimes there’s a good reason why. For example, the person offering you a truckload of televisions for $900 each when they retail for $3,000 may not be a legitimate representative of the electronics department at Sears. [More]
Walmart Customers Charged With Beating Security Guard, Running Off With 55 DVDs
By 1.28.14
On Friday, a Walmart security guard in South Carolina confronted a woman who was pushing a cart filled with DVDs that she hadn’t paid for out the door. That’s his job. Instead of surrendering or simply running off, the two women allegedly started hitting the guard and then ran off. [More]
The History Of The Global Strategic Maple Syrup Reserve, In Comic Form
By 1.22.14
We at Consumerist remain fascinated with the 2012 theft of 10,000 barrels of maple syrup from the Global Strategic Maple Syrup Reserve in Quebec, Canada. We’re not the only ones: there’s even a movie about the heist starring Jason Segal in production. Yet some questions remained: Did authorities ever catch everyone involved? Was every drop of syrup recovered? More importantly, why is there a global strategic maple syrup reserve in the first place? [More]
What Happens If You Donate Your Car, Then Someone Steals It?
By 1.13.14
Let’s say that you have a clunker of a car that won’t sell for very much money, and there’s a charity you’d like to support. You hand over the car, they take care of selling it, and you get a charitable tax deduction. Seems delightfully simple…until someone steals your car off the lot where the charity was storing it until auction. [More]
Woman Steals Three Puppies From Petland, Brings Them Back
By 11.12.13
As much fun as it sounds, you can’t rent puppies from Petland. Authorities and Petland employees remain baffled at a recent two-state canine crime spree that ended when tiny white puppies from three different stores were smuggled back into a Missouri Petland. [More]
Shoplifters Make Effective Use Of Their Time, Dash Out Of Store With Rolling Racks
By 11.7.13
When you hear the word “shoplifting,” you might picture one person slipping a few small items into her purse, or a person layering extra clothes under their jacket in the fitting room. That’s not how large shoplifting operations roll. Literally roll, in the case of these thieves who took a few racks of merchandise out of a Sports Authority store near Chicago. [More]
Postal Worker Pleads Guilty To Stealing $450,000 Worth Of Mailed Jewelry
By 10.28.13
Pawn shops in the Cash America chain sent packages including precious jewelry to a repair and refurbishment center Fort Worth, Texas, but starting in 2011, many packages never reached their destination. Why was that? It took a two-year investigation to find the culprit, a worker at a processing and distribution center in North Texas. He pleaded guilty this week in federal court. [More]
Man Celebrates Court Date By Gobbling Child’s Birthday Cake
By 10.3.13
You have to go inside a courthouse, and in the car you have a dog and a birthday cake for your daughter. You don’t want the dog to eat the cake. To keep them apart, you could put the cake in the trunk, bring the dog in the courthouse, or bring the cake in the courthouse. A woman in Washington State chose that last option, which was bad news for the cake. [More]
When Is Taking Someone’s Phone Not Considered “Theft”?
By 10.2.13
How long do you need to borrow something before it’s considered stolen? And does the mere act of taking a phone out of someone else’s hands without permission constitute theft? According to an appeals court in California, no. [More]
NFL’s New Stadium Bag Policy Is Great, Until People Blame It For Car Burglaries
By 9.4.13
The National Football League recently put new rules in place about what kind of bags fans can bring inside stadiums, a change intended to speed up security screening. All bags but the tiniest of purses need to be made of clear plastic, as if we’ve suddenly become a nation of retail employees. That’s fine…until fans blame the policy when their non-conforming bags get stolen from their cars in the parking lot. [More]
