A shoplifter tells his story

[MillCreek]

https://www.kgw.com/article/news/investigations/portland-oregon-organized-retail-theft-shoplifting-stores-security-laws/283-08879cf3-bb45-4dbc-8554-415e22030d10

I found this interesting, since we have had some stories this week about local Targets putting things like laundry soap, razor blades, toothpaste and underwear in locked cases.  I am not going to wait around for someone to come unlock the case; I will just buy it on Amazon.

[JN01]

You wouldn't think crackheads would be stealing many personal hygiene items.

[Pb]

Stolen to re-sell possibly.

[Declaration Day]

You wouldn't think crackheads would be stealing many personal hygiene items.

When I was in my late teens I knew a crackhead who would steal razors, deodorant, body wash, etc. from drug stores. There was a pawn shop that would give him about 20% of the item's retail value.

[MechAg94]

Stolen to re-sell possibly.

From the article, that is what the guy said.  A pawn shop would be easier, but it sounded like he would sell to whoever looked like someone who would buy what he had.  He mentioned he would prefer to sell it all at once to get rid of it.

[Bogie]

Last week saw two guys walking down a major STL street. Each had two 10packs of Milwaukee batteries, and another box.
 
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwaukee-M18-18V-Lithium-Ion-XC-Extended-Capacity-Battery-Pack-5-0Ah-10-Pack-48-11-1852-10X/301453466

[230RN]

Lately I've started to notice people leaving the supermarket with a small armload of things.  Not sure whether they're brazenly boosting the items or just don't want to pay the new charges for bagging the purchases.

I also noticed they moved the batteries from 'way over at the end of the store to right in front of the service desk.  I was reminded of the Seinfeld episode where  Uncle Leo was swiping batteries.  To him, it was OK because everybody was doing it.  Holy crap.

They also went from armed guards years ago to no armed guards and back to armed guards the last couple of months.  However, this may be unrelated to shoplifting. Handguns only, but I wouldn't mind seeing them slinging ARs, I tell ya true.

Terry, 230RN

[Tuco]

They also went from armed guards years ago to no armed guards and back to armed guards the last couple of months.  However, this may be unrelated to shoplifting.

It seems to me that no-armed guards would be less likely to shoplift.
Years ago the local Meijer (WalMart style shopping at a smaller, regional chain) employed a loss prevention specialist.  All the locals knew the guy by sight, a floor walker who observed and confronted suspected shoplifters.  He himself was ceremoniously fired for pocketing cigarettes in the surveillance camera's blind spots.
Wouldn't have been be a problem if he'd had no arms.

[MillCreek]

If I am buying only a few items and I forget my bags in the truck, I will pay for the items and walk out with them in my arms.  The last thing I need is more 8 cent bags in the back seat of the truck.

[230RN]

^ I found the formerly provided plastic grocery bags real handy around the house if they didn't have holes in them.  I'm going to regret not having them, even at (nowadays) 10cents apiece.


I bought a couple of cloth bags from the retailers (King Soopers and Walmart) and they're OK except 63.21% of the time I either leave them home or leave them in the car when I go in.  No big deal to go back and get them if you're at the store if you're mobile, but with my mobility issues I just say the hell with it and pay 10 cents each for plastic ones.

The two Natural Grocery stores near here have no provisions at all for bagging, but have great big boxes full of cartons of various sizes in which they got their merchandise.  You just select an empty carton suitable for the volume of your purchases and off you go.  A little harder to handle than bags with actual handles, but I'm helping to save our pretty blue planet. <rolleyes>

Terry, 230RN

[MillCreek]

https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/seattle/target-close-2-seattle-stores-theft-organized-retail-crime/281-ff8bbf28-ee83-401b-a6ea-9feebca4799e

Target is closing nine stores in four states due to retail theft.  Two of the stores are in Seattle.

[MechAg94]

I was wondering if a store that did to-go or delivery only (employees pick items and deliver to window or take to car) would work.  However, if looters broke in anyway, they probably still wouldn't get prosecuted.  No enforcement means just about any efforts to work around it would fail.