Community Chat

[Kachina624]

Also having a Hugh problem are the big hardware store like Lowe's, Home Depot, Harbor Freight etc.  Their merchandise, power tool being the most lucrative, are considerably more expensive than what Walgreens peddles.  There are gangs that go from city to city, store to store stealing from these places.  The situation has become so serious, the losses so great, that our state legislature will consider more severe penalties for this type of theft. 

[drizzellla]

That was such a sad aspect of your job when I worked retail. We would be hit by professionals. They had different modes of operation but it was still easy to spot. The company said we were not to follow them or confront the shoplifter.

A co-worker saw a man walk out with an entire display and she followed him out of the store. She was promptly fired by the company.

The company closed the store.

PS The company is closing most of it's retail stores except for 2 or 3. They have closed hundreds already.

[Mindy D]

Some of the most stolen items are resold on Amazon and other big e-retailers. The thieves take teeth whitening strips, razor blades, allergy medications and other OTC medications, to name a few examples. They prefer to target small items with long shelf lives for these thefts.The rings hire middle men to do the actual stealing, then they pay the middlemen and then they resell the goods on e-retailing sites. The dollar amount of all the thefts from retailers in the area of Northern California is at 45 BILLION dollars. 
Larger items such as baby formula and diapers have also been targeted by the rings for theft and online resale. eBay and Facebook have also been used as selling sites by the rings.

These crimes are known as organized retail crime. 

[Mindy D]

[Mindy D]

Here's a thief stealing from Walgreens right in front of a witness and store security. One local SF cop said that bail reform has contributed to the problem there. He also said that the dollar amount for misdemeanor theft was raised to $950, which has also contributed to the area's problems.

[Duckncover]

I agree that things are upside down now. Everyone literally pays the price for the theft...higher prices for everything. Even criminals buy things sometimes, but believe what you like. 

[Carmie]

Shoplifters won't even be stopped unless they take $950 worth of goods at one time.  The police won't even show up.

theives are bringing carts into the stores and stocking up and rolling right out the doors.

This has  been happening for a while.  The whole city is turning into a big dump. What a beautiful city ruined

[beach-mom]

This is so sad and I wonder how we ever got here.

It is sad for the people who live there and rely on that store for prescriptions and other drugstore necessities.

It is sad for the single mom who can't find diapers because the shelves are empty and the diapers are being sold online for twice the price.

It is sad for residents who no longer have a neighborhood place most of us have and probably take for granted.

I don't believe drugstores were on the decline before this. This is the result of rioting and massive unpunished shoplifting.

It is sad to see this happening in our historic once-beautiful cities.

Something needs to be done to protect ALL stores and restaurants, large chains and small independent businesses.   

[haddon9]

I heard this on the news a few days ago.  It is sad but they are a business and if being in that city is not doing their business any good then I understand why they are closing up shop!  Maybe it might get the local government to wake up and do something about their city's crime.

My brother lived in San Francisco more than ten years ago and he had to finally move because of the high cost of living and huge homeless population.  Seems that things have only gotten worse in the last decade.

[SeaMaiden]

We have many of Walgreen stores here in throughout the Seattle WA area. Crime is way up here too with the police cutbacks. I think this is a country wide issue where crime has become rampant...no one stops anyone anymore from committing crimes...and no police response to crimes.  Many stores( not Walmart) have closed their doors here too.