Thieves stealing groceries again; wait until the end
- Thread starter CreepyMcCreeperson
- Start date
A Colorado grocery store security worker says he was fired after he filmed a viral video of 3 men stealing $500 worth of detergent
King Soopers' parent company, Kroger, is among many retailers that forbid employees from intervening in a theft or chasing shoplifting suspects.www.businessinsider.com
A Colorado grocery store security worker says he was fired after he filmed a viral video of 3 men stealing $500 worth of detergent
Dominick Reuter
Jul 6, 2023, 2:48 PM EDT
Screenshots from Santino Burrola's video of shoplifting suspects loading merchandise into a black Chevy Trax, shared by the Arapahoe County Sheriff. Santino Burrola via Arapahoe County Sheriff
- A Colorado man says he was fired from King Soopers grocery store after filming a shoplifting incident.
- His video of three men loading $500 worth of detergent into a car went viral, with over 1.5 million views.
- The store's parent company, Kroger, has a policy against intervening in theft, as do several retailers.
Santino Burrola thought he was following the rules.
When he noticed a man pushing a cart full of laundry detergent out of the Denver-area King Soopers grocery store where he worked as a security guard, the former military police officer pulled out his Samsung Galaxy S22 phone and started filming.
Following the man and a second suspect out to the parking lot, Burrola recorded the pair hastily loading the haul into a black Chevrolet Trax, where a third man was waiting in the driver's seat.
When one of the men closed the hatchback, Burrola noticed the license plate was covered with a piece of aluminum foil, which he gently plucked off, revealing the plate number.
Burrola then uploaded the video to TikTok on Father's Day. It quickly went viral on that platform as well as Instagram and Reddit. The original video now has more than 1.5 million views and was even shared by hip-hop artist Snoop Dogg.
The foil was the "only thing I could snatch without losin my job," Burrola said in a comment on his TikTok post.
His employer saw it differently, however.
As it happens, King Soopers' parent company, Kroger, has a policy against engaging or interfering with shoplifters.
Burrola told the Denver CBS affiliate he was suspended when he arrived for his next shift and fired the following week.
"I and the union rep sat down with them and they [King Soopers] recommended termination and so I got fired that day," Burrola said.
A spokesperson for King Soopers did not respond to Insider's request for comment on this story.
"All I did was just record criminals and reveal them!" he added, saying that he believes he did the right thing. "I would never let any criminal conduct slide, especially when it's happening right in front of me," he said.
Burrola's footage has yielded results, according to the Arapahoe County Sheriff, which issued a statement identifying the driver as 32-year-old Jorge Pantoja, who has been arrested, and the two accomplices as Robert and Bugsy, who remain at large.
According to the Sheriff's statement, Pantoja told investigators he borrowed the car from a friend before picking up Robert and Bugsy from a nearby light-rail station telling them he had an "opportunity to make some money."
The statement estimates the value of the stolen merchandise was $400-$500.
Many retailers prohibit workers from intervening in thefts
Experts say household goods, like the detergent in this incident, are in fact more targeted for theft than high-dollar-value luxury items like jewelry or handbags, often because such essentials are relatively unguarded and are easily sold for cash.
Still many retailers, like Lululemon, say they have a zero-tolerance policy for employees engaging with thieves in any way — including following suspects out of the store.
"We put the safety of our team, of our guests, front and center. It's only merchandise," Lululemon CEO Calvin McDonald told CNBC after two workers in Georgia were fired for pursuing a trio of repeat shoplifters in a similarly viral incident.
Burrola's cousin, meanwhile, has launched a GoFundMe campaign to raise funds to cover Burrola's lost earnings, help with legal fees, and facilitate a planned move to Florida. Neither Burrola nor his cousin responded to Insider's requests for comment.
"I hope this changes the policy," Burrola told CBS regarding Kroger's stance, "and gives power back to retail workers like myself."
damn that’s fukked up…thought it was an overzealous shopper who was tryna stop them…didn’t know that was security
Ok if corporate is letting customers steal, might as well tell the homies to come in and steal some shyt for you..
verbalkint
I see you niccas...
Might as well fire employees for giving statements to police at this point.
theres logic to this madness and you have to keep in mind when see stories like this that this policy isn't about wrong or right but dollars and cents.
this is what he said..
thats not all he did, he proved he would be a liability to the company, a liability that would cost the company more than it could possibly lose in what was stolen. had the driver decided to put the vehicle in reverse and run him over, the company would have been dealing with that fallout and Burrola or his family would have likely sought compensation from the company as well, an amount no doubt that exceeds the $500 of stolen detergent.
Bro.... What you're saying is not true. Because since they have a policy against going after thieves.
If the man recording would have been injured then the company wouldn't be liable.
So there was no need to fire him since nothing happened.
feelosofer
#ninergang
Middle-High end Detergent is actually valuable in the streets.
Elle Seven
Superstar
All of that is about to get sold at the weekend flea market
This is a surprisingly well thought out, tempered, and sober response. Especially for a coli thread.
the company not being found ultimately liable still doesn't prevent bad press and costly attorney fees to defend themselves from litigation. it all costs.
it's not about what happened in the sense that there was no injuries etc. it's about what could happen. it's like when wildlife officials put down wild animals that no longer fear humans and venture in our spaces seeking food. the chances they will injure or kill one of us goes up exponentially after that initial behavior is observed. barrula demonstrated by engaging with those thieves in the manner that he did that next time there might be an escalation on his or the thieves part. that's a liability.
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I see where you're coming from.
But This is literally what the policy is for.
Pretty much what all policies are for.
Can't even take it to court.
No one is going to feel sympathy for you if your company tells you not to put yourself in danger, but yet, you do it anyway.
Camera man is just as dumb for filming. He could have been killed.Da fukk did i just watch?
If true must be the dumbest thieves around
In the @bnew utopia his and everyone else’s granny will have to travel an hour round trip to pick up weekly meds and food/toiletries due to his love for thieves. Sure showed those money hungry corporations though!