# License to steal



## HDRider (Jul 21, 2011)

A friend called me just now to tell me this story.

He was at Home Depot when he saw two guys walk out the door with a cart full of power-tools without paying. He told the HD employee as they both watched them walk out. The employee said they are not allowed to do anything.

He was shocked.

He went to the manager and the manager told the same story.


----------



## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

No big deal.
Just pass on the costs to the consumer.
I’ve posted before about telling a kid to stop running his filthy mitts through a bin of trail mix at a grocery store and finding out when I told an employee that they can’t do anything about it. 
Asinine.


----------



## wannabfarmer (Jun 30, 2015)

my friend was an in store security and not sure about your state but here if they catch them before they get out of the door they can press charges but if they leave the store there was little that they could do. this is thanks to all of the lawsuits of people burglarizing stores then getting tackled and injured and winning. don't correct their behavior instead reward their so called loopholes.


----------



## HDRider (Jul 21, 2011)

wannabfarmer said:


> my friend was an in store security and not sure about your state but here if they catch them before they get out of the door they can press charges but if they leave the store there was little that they could do. this is thanks to all of the lawsuits of people burglarizing stores then getting tackled and injured and winning. don't correct their behavior instead reward their so called loopholes.


Curious. If they have not left the store they have not stolen anything.


----------



## emdeengee (Apr 20, 2010)

That is odd. In Canada you cannot arrest or question a suspected shop lifter UNTIL they leave the store with the merchandise. Security can call the police and many do but often they send the information to the company lawyers and the lawyers go after the suspected shoplifter civilly - and they never let up. The son of a friend had them after him for years. Also spoiled his chance to join the military.


----------



## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

Home Depot has a strict policy against confronting shoplifters. 

Four associates were fired from a Palm Coast, Florida, store in 2016 after helping to catch a suspected shoplifter who was charged with theft, The Daytona Beach News-Journal reported. 

In a similar situation, uproar ensued after a Home Depot associate in Portland, Oregon, was terminated after interfering in a domestic dispute in the warehouse's parking lot in 2017, Snopes reported. The associate was ultimately offered his job back and he accepted. 

The New York Daily News reported that, in the same year, an Army veteran was fired from his role at a Home Depot in Texas after throwing a paint roller extension at three alleged shoplifters. 

The chain has defended its policy, citing safety concerns. A Home Depot spokesperson told the Daily News that "only trained security personnel are allowed to confront shoplifters for the safety of customers and employees." 

https://www.businessinsider.com/hom...es-can-be-fired-for-confronting-shoplifters-5


----------



## geo in mi (Nov 14, 2008)

A family member was a Meijer security guy and he said the little old ladies were the worst. I believe that when I see them sampling the grapes. Munch, munch, munch...…. 

geo


----------



## HDRider (Jul 21, 2011)

So it really is a license to steal, or more accurately, permission to steal.


----------



## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

geo in mi said:


> A family member was a Meijer security guy and he said the little old ladies were the worst. I believe that when I see them sampling the grapes. Munch, munch, munch...….
> 
> geo


I never buy grapes without sampling one . They’re stupid expensive and if they are old with leathery skins they aren’t very good.
However...I always ask first.
Most employees in produce sections carry a knife with them and always volunteer to cut a fruit or veggie to sample.
Eating grapes by the handful is a different story.


----------



## nchobbyfarm (Apr 10, 2011)

HDRider said:


> Curious. If they have not left the store they have not stolen anything.


If they pass the register but not out the door then they can be charged.


----------



## Bearfootfarm (Jul 13, 2006)

HDRider said:


> Curious. If they have not left the store they have not stolen anything.


They can be charged if they are trying to conceal items, or if they are beyond the check-out registers and headed for the exits with items not paid for.


----------



## HDRider (Jul 21, 2011)

Bearfootfarm said:


> They can be charged if they are trying to conceal items, or if they are beyond the check-out registers and headed for the exits with items not paid for.


That would be pretty easy. Put it in a cart (nor concealed) head out the door in the garden center. Bam! Home free


----------



## wannabfarmer (Jun 30, 2015)

as stated if they are concealing or are past the registers and have no intention of paying they literally have like 20 feet to catch them. He hated the job but it was good experience while he was in school and is now a state trooper. He said expensive items such as electronics they will follow them out of the store while on the phone with the police and give them a description and a plate number and wait for police. if that store just let them walk out with items and did nothing at all then they should probably restructure their policy. they don't have to confront them to get a description of the car and a plate number.


----------



## emdeengee (Apr 20, 2010)

Years ago when my husband worked for Sears two men stole a canoe. Just picked it up in the sporting goods department and carried it through the store to the exit. A clerk returning from lunch held the doors open for them. No one thought that they were stealing it. No one asked for proof of sale. If you have enough audacity and impudence you can get away with a lot.


----------



## 101pigs (Sep 18, 2018)

HDRider said:


> A friend called me just now to tell me this story.
> 
> He was at Home Depot when he saw two guys walk out the door with a cart full of power-tools without paying. He told the HD employee as they both watched them walk out. The employee said they are not allowed to do anything.
> 
> ...


Walmart and home depot and other stores here in my town have a tag on all goods. When paid for that takes care of the sells. If not you are stopped at the door greeder or any security and your cart is checked to fine the item not paid for. Used to by a lot of kids come in and put on a jacket or something and run out the door. security most times got them in the parking lot before they could get to the main road. Most times police is on the store lot and can also get them. Sure cut down on kids and others from stealing from most stores here. If it is a their first time they get a ticket they can paid at the police dept. If more then once they go to jail til fine is paid. Plus they are ban from the store for life. Works here.


----------



## HDRider (Jul 21, 2011)

I guess they did not have those tags


----------



## mnn2501 (Apr 2, 2008)

geo in mi said:


> I believe that when I see them sampling the grapes. Munch, munch, munch...….
> 
> geo


 We always taste 1 grape before deciding whether they are worth the cost - some are, some are not.


----------



## Redlands Okie (Nov 28, 2017)

Was told lowes stores figures the cost of prosecuting was to high to be worth the hassle of stoping the thief’s. Then there is the safety of the employees issues. 
Yep its a pretty sure bet you can get away with being a thief.


----------



## mnn2501 (Apr 2, 2008)

emdeengee said:


> Years ago when my husband worked for Sears two men stole a canoe. Just picked it up in the sporting goods department and carried it through the store to the exit. A clerk returning from lunch held the doors open for them. No one thought that they were stealing it. No one asked for proof of sale. If you have enough audacity and impudence you can get away with a lot.


Yeah, that story gets told and retold in retail with only the location changing. Sometimes its told they were caught when going back for the paddles.
I first heard it in the 70's.
Its an Urban legend.


----------



## HDRider (Jul 21, 2011)

*Dallas* County District Attorney John Creuzot ignited a firestorm of controversy when he announced he wouldn't *prosecute* some low-level crimes, including certain *theft *offenses. ... But part of his plan included a decision *not* to *prosecute thefts* of personal items under $750 that *are stolen *out of necessity

In California as long as the total value of the stolen property is under $950, only a ghost of an offense has occurred. A thief may now steal something under that limit on a daily basis and it will never rise to felony status. In the event that a perpetrator is pursued and apprehended, the consequence can be a small fine or a brief stay in jail. In reality, these repercussions are rare.


----------



## wannabfarmer (Jun 30, 2015)

emdeengee said:


> If you have enough audacity and impudence you can get away with a lot.


especially in politics.....lol


----------



## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Here the stores let them get away with it until thieves take enough to be considered grand theft, then they prosecute using the videos as evidence. Other stores hire full time security guards.


----------



## GTX63 (Dec 13, 2016)

Whether in retail, banking, or politics, the phrase has always been true- A bold thief is a good thief.


----------



## Micheal (Jan 28, 2009)

Around here, walk out of the store (mostly Walmart) without paying and you become part of the six o'clock news... As in do you recognize this person - if so call ______, the local police...... 
And you would be surprised of the number of the light fingered ones that look right up at the camera(s).....


----------



## Mish (Oct 15, 2015)

Shoplifting is pretty horrible around here because of Prop 47 - anything you steal under $950 is a misdemeanor and police/courts aren't really interested. You could probably walk out of most chain stores around here loaded down with things and no one would stop you because even if they did, odds are the police won't even show up.

The Walmart closest to me now has: The makeup area completely enclosed like the electronics sections in some Walmarts - you have to buy the makeup at that counter before leaving the area and then continue shopping. Tons of new glass cases for a bunch of stuff in the pharmacy/personal care section (some OTC medications, razors, shaving cream, hair dryers, curling irons, hair dye, a bunch of other stuff - locked up). Various new glass/metal locked cases throughout the store. A group of employees at the exit checking receipts, causing a line backing up past the registers to get out of the store.

I've pretty much stopped shopping there, I'm not going to spend an extra hour or so hunting down employees to unlock case after case for things I need. From the looks of the parking lot, a lot of people who would actually spend money there instead of stealing have also stopped shopping there. I wonder how long that store is going to last.


----------



## FreeRange (Oct 9, 2005)

Can't the Home Depot employees call the police?


----------



## doc- (Jun 26, 2015)

wannabfarmer said:


> my friend was an in store security and not sure about your state but here if they catch them before they get out of the door they can press charges but if they leave the store there was little that they could do. this is thanks to all of the lawsuits of people burglarizing stores then getting tackled and injured and winning. don't correct their behavior instead reward their so called loopholes.


Add in the other economic factors: say $500 worth of merchandise is involved. Profit on that is probably ~$100. The employee involved has to make a statement at the police station and then appear in court (you know how many continuances that will involve) all @$15+/hr. The store loses big money. They prefer the small loss as cost of doing business.


----------



## emdeengee (Apr 20, 2010)

It may be an urban legend but it is also fact. And in the case of my husband's store it happened in 1979. The year before a snowblower walked out of the store not to mention cans of paint leaving regularly. Many security changes were made after this latest loss including chaining down large items.

I always thought that clothing would be the most desirable for a shop lifter as it is easy to stash it or double wear it but tools were the most stolen items.


----------



## emdeengee (Apr 20, 2010)

wannabfarmer said:


> especially in politics.....lol



and even more so in finance.


----------



## AmericanStand (Jul 29, 2014)

HDRider said:


> In California as long as the total value of the stolen property is under $950, only a ghost of an offense has occurred. A thief may now steal something under that limit on a daily basis and it will never rise to felony status


Yeah that’s what are used to say about things like peeing in public and other minor offenses that now have your branded as a sex offender and sentenced with a life sentence


----------



## AmericanStand (Jul 29, 2014)

emdeengee said:


> It may be an urban legend but it is also fact. And in the case of my husband's store it happened in 1979. The year before a snowblower walked out of the store not to mention cans of paint leaving regularly. Many security changes were made after this latest loss including chaining down large items.
> 
> I always thought that clothing would be the most desirable for a shop lifter as it is easy to stash it or double wear it but tools were the most stolen items.


Do you suppose that if a man is willing to steal a tool that means work so a person stealing a tool is desperate for work?


----------



## AmericanStand (Jul 29, 2014)

emdeengee said:


> Years ago when my husband worked for Sears two men stole a canoe. Just picked it up in the sporting goods department and carried it through the store to the exit. A clerk returning from lunch held the doors open for them. No one thought that they were stealing it. No one asked for proof of sale. If you have enough audacity and impudence you can get away with a lot.


 In Anchorage Alaska back when there was a JC pennies a man took a new pick up truck for a test drive and stopped at JCPenney‘s where the manager helped him hook up a trailer with a new boat on it he wasn’t caught in the theft wasn’t even recognized by pennies until they dropped the shipping container in Seattle And the load did not agree with the manifest


----------



## Redlands Okie (Nov 28, 2017)

doc- said:


> Add in the other economic factors: say $500 worth of merchandise is involved. Profit on that is probably ~$100. The employee involved has to make a statement at the police station and then appear in court (you know how many continuances that will involve) all @$15+/hr. The store loses big money. They prefer the small loss as cost of doing business.


Thats the cheap part. Now add in the cost of having a lawyer present with associated expense. Plus other management time tied up. 

Personally would prefer them to prosecute and add that cost to the overhead.


----------



## emdeengee (Apr 20, 2010)

AmericanStand said:


> Do you suppose that if a man is willing to steal a tool that means work so a person stealing a tool is desperate for work?


Or he/she is just a thief and wants what he wants without paying for it. Or he/she just wants a new shiny version of an old tool or something that they do not have in their collection. The same excuse could be used for the shoplifter who steals a suit (male or female) and shoes because they are going for a job interview.

Working in retail showed me that most people were lovely but there was so much theft that it was quite shocking - and not all the thieves were bad guys as a lot of these lovely people were also thieves. 

This was 35 years ago and theft from stores has only accelerated. And of course all the other shoppers and the staff (who don't get raises) pay for the losses.


----------



## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

FreeRange said:


> Can't the Home Depot employees call the police?


When my van was stolen it took several hours for the police to show up to take the report. They aren't likely to show up much sooner for a few hundred dollars of merchandise.


----------



## Darren (May 10, 2002)

A local woman was finally caught by police for "innovative" self scanning at a local Walmart. 

"The total value of all of the items stolen is $266.74. Police say, “given the number of items and number of transactions in which this took place, it is not a mistake,” according to the complaint." 

Based on video she had done that thirteen times. She also handles money for the local volunteer fire dept. She got off with probation.


----------



## Redlands Okie (Nov 28, 2017)

Hope the fire department knows


----------



## Ridgetop (Feb 11, 2019)

Tools are stolen because they are easy to pawn or resell at swap meets, not because the thief intends to do any work!


----------



## light rain (Jan 14, 2013)

Darren said:


> A local woman was finally caught by police for "innovative" self scanning at a local Walmart.
> 
> "The total value of all of the items stolen is $266.74. Police say, “given the number of items and number of transactions in which this took place, it is not a mistake,” according to the complaint."
> 
> Based on video she had done that thirteen times. She also handles money for the local volunteer fire dept. She got off with probation.


Does she STILL handle money for the F.D.? Probation?


----------



## light rain (Jan 14, 2013)

emdeengee said:


> Or he/she is just a thief and wants what he wants without paying for it. Or he/she just wants a new shiny version of an old tool or something that they do not have in their collection. The same excuse could be used for the shoplifter who steals a suit (male or female) and shoes because they are going for a job interview.
> 
> Working in retail showed me that most people were lovely but there was so much theft that it was quite shocking - and not all the thieves were bad guys as a lot of these lovely people were also thieves.
> 
> This was 35 years ago and theft from stores has only accelerated. And of course all the other shoppers and the staff (who don't get raises) pay for the losses.



All the years that I went to church I never remember the priest or minister address the subject of theft from the pulpit. Like with a direct question to the folks sitting there of "do you or your family members steal and don't do anything to stop it"? 

I know of one man, decades ago, stole candy from the shopkeeper. When his Dad found out he had to go to the store owner, apologize and go down and sweep/clean up the store for a week or two. 

Things and attitudes are so much different than 80 years ago. Some are better but many are so much worse...


----------



## Ridgetop (Feb 11, 2019)

When my youngest boys were about 3 and 4 I would do my grocery shopping on the way home from dropping the older kids at school. While I was concentrating on the checker ringing up the right prices and my coupons (remember double coupon days?) my babies were helping themselves to what they thought were refreshments! I marched them back in the store and made them apologize to the store manager and return the candy bars they had taken. For about a month afterward I used to frisk them down before leaving the store. They learned that they had to earn money for that stuff. If I hadn't made such a big fuss, they would never have learned. Parents are the first teachers, but there have to be consequences for actions. If the stores are not interested in stopping and prosecuting shoplifters, then thieves get the idea that they can do it risk free.


----------



## light rain (Jan 14, 2013)

Ridgetop said:


> When my youngest boys were about 3 and 4 I would do my grocery shopping on the way home from dropping the older kids at school. While I was concentrating on the checker ringing up the right prices and my coupons (remember double coupon days?) my babies were helping themselves to what they thought were refreshments! I marched them back in the store and made them apologize to the store manager and return the candy bars they had taken. For about a month afterward I used to frisk them down before leaving the store. They learned that they had to earn money for that stuff. If I hadn't made such a big fuss, they would never have learned. Parents are the first teachers, but there have to be consequences for actions. If the stores are not interested in stopping and prosecuting shoplifters, then thieves get the idea that they can do it risk free.


Good for you and your children! And good for the shopkeeper!

Unfortunately many parents really don't care enough to take these measures. And when Susie or Johnny graduates to car theft or robbery they "can't imagine" why THEIR kids would do this... 
There is a marked decline in critical thinking in the USA.


----------



## Darren (May 10, 2002)

light rain said:


> Does she STILL handle money for the F.D.? Probation?


Yes


----------



## light rain (Jan 14, 2013)

Darren said:


> Yes


Glad the people that make those decisions are in your neck of the woods and not ours...


----------



## emdeengee (Apr 20, 2010)

When my sister and I were 7 and 8 years old we saved our allowance to buy a birthday present for Mom. No one every told us about sales tax. We were a few cents short so were turned away by the cashier. 

The mall had a fountain which people used as a wishing well into which they tossed pennies.

I had the brilliant idea that we should just take the few pennies we needed. My sister covered me while I dipped into the fountain. Seemed like the answer but on the way home we both started to cry and felt so ashamed. 

The present was spoiled for us but we never told Mom what we had done because we did not want to spoil her birthday. When we got our next allowance we went straight back to the fountain and put the pennies back as well as many more. But guilt lives on for over 50 years.


----------



## light rain (Jan 14, 2013)

emdeengee said:


> When my sister and I were 7 and 8 years old we saved our allowance to buy a birthday present for Mom. No one every told us about sales tax. We were a few cents short so were turned away by the cashier.
> 
> The mall had a fountain which people used as a wishing well into which they tossed pennies.
> 
> ...


Someone taught you both well... And cared...


----------



## TraderBob (Oct 21, 2010)

HDRider said:


> That would be pretty easy. Put it in a cart (nor concealed) head out the door in the garden center. Bam! Home free


Not so easy, but it does work depending on who is at the garden checkout, which is right in front of the doors...they can be stopped and asked to show a receipt, although they can walk right around you and out the door, as you can't physically restrain them and force them to show you a receipt. I've seen "customers" leave the cart and walk out.

The most brazen one was a guy who put a generator in a cart, took pictures of it, and posted for sale on Facebook. Apparently he got an offer as he tried to walk out with it, but freaked out and left it when he thought a manager was watching him. One of the employees saw the post on FB, so they know who he is, and is usually offered personal customer service when he comes in if seen. 

The worst is the ring that has been hitting Joplin, Springfield, Branson, Harrison and other area HD and, since all tool batteries are secured, they are opening Dewalt portable power tool boxes, like leaf blowers, trimmers and such, and stealing the batteries out of them. 

Employees can't even go in the parking lot and get a plate number...

Next the employees will be asked to hold the door open for thieves...


----------



## TraderBob (Oct 21, 2010)

emdeengee said:


> When my sister and I were 7 and 8 years old we saved our allowance to buy a birthday present for Mom. No one every told us about sales tax. We were a few cents short so were turned away by the cashier.
> 
> The mall had a fountain which people used as a wishing well into which they tossed pennies.
> 
> ...



Those poor people...you stole their wishes, they've had a rough life because the fountain wish fairy never granted their wishes because it hadn't been paid for....shame on you...

J/K...if people want to throw perfectly good money away..........


----------



## HDRider (Jul 21, 2011)

TraderBob said:


> Not so easy, but it does work depending on who is at the garden checkout, which is right in front of the doors...they can be stopped and asked to show a receipt, although they can walk right around you and out the door, as you can't physically restrain them and force them to show you a receipt. I've seen "customers" leave the cart and walk out.
> 
> The most brazen one was a guy who put a generator in a cart, took pictures of it, and posted for sale on Facebook. Apparently he got an offer as he tried to walk out with it, but freaked out and left it when he thought a manager was watching him. One of the employees saw the post on FB, so they know who he is, and is usually offered personal customer service when he comes in if seen.
> 
> ...


The employees are told not stop them, company policy.


----------



## TraderBob (Oct 21, 2010)

HDRider said:


> The employees are told not stop them, company policy.


I work at HD, specifically in D28 which is Garden ... employees are told they can ask for a receipt, and as I said above, can't physically stop them from leaving if they refuse. I could however, step into the aisle, in front of their cart, and ask for a receipt.


----------



## HDRider (Jul 21, 2011)

TraderBob said:


> I work at HD, specifically in D28 which is Garden ... employees are told they can ask for a receipt, and as I said above, can't physically stop them from leaving if they refuse. I could however, step into the aisle, in front of their cart, and ask for a receipt.


The story shared with me was the employees let them walk with no interference, to the point it looked like they were in on it..


----------



## TraderBob (Oct 21, 2010)

HDRider said:


> The story shared with me was the employees let them walk with no interference, to the point it looked like they were in on it..


Yeah, we do have employees that don't care, and don't want to be "involved". We do have some though that care, and will do what is "allowable".

I have been reprimanded twice for my actions in attempting to stop a thief. What a crock of crap. Neither of them involving me stopping anyone. So irritating. I almost want to be one of the "don't care".... almost.


----------



## HDRider (Jul 21, 2011)

Beyond the HD story, another friend saw a young girl take maybe $1,000 worth of headphones out of a store. Same story, when my friend brought it to the attention of the store employee.


----------



## Evons hubby (Oct 3, 2005)

GTX63 said:


> Whether in retail, banking, or politics, the phrase has always been true- A bold thief is a good thief.


The problem I see here is there is no such thing as a good thief!


----------



## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Doesn't matter to the company how much is stolen because they write off the losses and raise the price next time around. We all end up paying for it.

Wal-mart, someone I know who worked there often saw people putting on new shoes and wearing them out the door, their old shoes left in boxes or just on the floor. Another person I know who worked at Wal-mart went out a fire emergency door to close the door so the alarm would stop, and encountered a group of people loading a bunch of big "free" merchandise in their truck. The employee got fired for "pursuing thieves". But Wal-mart hires security to check receipts and merchandise in the cart. That I don't understand.

Sam's Club has a person at the exit that checks your receipt against the merchandise in your cart. Same parent company, different store policy.

I have heard people throwing absolute fits about the checker looking at their receipt. Stores do it every year in the months before Christmas. Don't like it, don't shop during that time. I'd rather show my receipt a million times than let a thief get away with a tv or air conditioner, or whatever.


----------



## Evons hubby (Oct 3, 2005)

Every time I read this thread title I think back to when I first got my real estate license!


----------



## GTX63 (Dec 13, 2016)

Rephrased as "A bold thief is a successful thief."


----------



## Darren (May 10, 2002)

light rain said:


> Glad the people that make those decisions are in your neck of the woods and not ours...


It's a very small, membership wise, fire dept. 

I left when I was replacing a brake line on a truck and another member replaced it using compression fittings before I had a chance to finish. I had told the chief compression fittings were a big no no in a brake system. Somehow that passed state inspection too. That wasn't the only truck with a problem. 

The tanker has major rust issues with the frame to tank mounts. 

Someone had also bypassed the shut off switch on the pumper by wiring directly to the batteries. When you're called out and the truck won't start because the batteries are drained, that's a problem.


----------



## light rain (Jan 14, 2013)

Darren said:


> It's a very small, membership wise, fire dept.
> 
> I left when I was replacing a brake line on a truck and another member replaced it using compression fittings before I had a chance to finish. I had told the chief compression fittings were a big no no in a brake system. Somehow that passed state inspection too. That wasn't the only truck with a problem.
> 
> ...


Hmmmnnn.... Bad decisions seem to have a way of making themselves known in time....
Unfortunately bad decisions can also sometimes have a heavy price...


----------



## light rain (Jan 14, 2013)

Yvonne's hubby said:


> Every time I read this thread title I think back to when I first got my real estate license!


The agents we've dealt with were great but we have heard horror stories....


----------



## Evons hubby (Oct 3, 2005)

light rain said:


> The agents we've dealt with were great but we have heard horror stories....


 Most agents are ok, but yes I read about some bad eggs every month. The real estate commissions news letter would have the details of some knothead who got greedy and the disciplinary actions taken. We were always (the people in our office) very careful that all of our clients and customers were taken care of in the best way we could. Plenty of honest dollars to be earned.


----------



## HDRider (Jul 21, 2011)

Organized retail crime costs retailers nearly $778,000 per $1 billion in sales in 2018, an all-time high, according to a National Retail Federation survey
In the past three quarters, Home Depot reported that an increase in “shrink” hurt its financial results.
Retail shrinkage includes organized retail crime.
Home Depot says if shrink gets too high, it may have to pass costs off to consumers.
To stop the crime, Home Depot and other retailers are spending more on preventing theft and working with law enforcement.
The Utah Attorney General’s Office worked with Home Depot and other retailers on a multimillion dollar operation against seven pawnshops selling stolen goods.
Imagine loading up a cart full of merchandise at a store, and just walking out the door in broad daylight as store employees watch you do it.

It’s known as organized retail crime, and it’s a growing trouble for the nation’s retailers. Instead of stealing for personal use, these criminals are part of a larger crime ring. The goods are taken to someone else in exchange for cash, then resold at a pawnshop, online or directly to a buyer.

https://www.cnbc.com/2019/11/22/inside-home-depots-efforts-to-stop-a-growing-theft-problem.html


----------

