How to Shoplift or Steal- Thieves in Action
First and foremost,
here’s my disclaimer: this is, in no way, a how to guide to follow when
trying to figure out how to steal. This is simply a hub about my
experiences while working in loss prevention over the years and stories
of people I’ve caught. My intent is your entertainment, not to teach
you how to steal. Stealing is wrong, and if you are a regular
shoplifter it’s only a matter of time before you get caught, so don’t
steal! Trust me, it doesn’t pay to steal.
Also, I will not
include any specific details. I won’t share previous company
information, names of people I’ve caught, etc. This is simply unethical.
Finally,
please realize that “loss prevention,” “assets protection” and
“security” are interchangeable. Different companies call it different
things, but they’re essentially the same thing.
Now that I’ve said all that, let’s get right to it!
My History
I worked for over three years in loss prevention. Prior to that I was
in college and my older brother was working as loss prevention for a
different company. I heard plenty of fun stories from him and this
began to peak my interest. Shortly after I graduated college (with a
degree in Pastoral Ministries, no less!), I went into loss prevention
for a major retailer. I quickly fell in love with the rush I got every
time I made an apprehension and interviewed a shoplifter.
The Game of Catching a Shoplifter
Catching someone
shoplifting is like a cat and mouse game. For my company, our work was
primarily done on the sales floor. In other words, if you were stealing
in my store, I would be out on the sales floor watching your every
move. Some people would call this a “secret shopper” job. I viewed it
as more of a predator-prey game!
Other companies catch
shoplifters primarily using CCTV, or Closed Circuit Television. This
can become more difficult, in my opinion, simply because they could
lose contact with the shoplifter unless they had a co-worker staying on
the cameras as they ran out to the sales floor to apprehend the thief.
As I said above, it was expected of me to be on the sales floor during
the stealing, but I would typically have at least one co-worker there
with me to watch on cameras.
Fun story: I can remember two,
distinct times in which I was watching someone on the sales floor and I
was no more than TWO feet away from them as the opened and concealed
merchandise!
Types of Shoplifters
I have a secret to tell you at this point- anyone can shoplift.
Black, white, yellow, male, female, old, top security-clearance
government contractors, young children, people in wheelchairs and the
list goes on. In fact, I’ve had experience with each one of the above
examples! The oldest person I caught was about 70…he had a full head
of gray hair and he was stealing several hundreds of dollars worth of
merchandise! I think the youngest person I caught was 9, but they can
steal even younger than that. And in case you’re wondering, YES, I have
caught a guy who had a top level security clearance for a
government-contracted company. Needless to say, he lost his job. He is
now a used car salesman…
In this day in age, there are more
than the simple kid-stealing-candy scenarios. (This group of thieves is
called opportunists.) There is, in fact, a category of shoplifters
whose sole purpose is to resell stolen merchandise. They are called
boosters, and they steal in order to resell stolen merchandise (note:
reselling stolen merchandise is called “fencing”). Boosters are
motivated by different things, but typical reasons that I heard include
drugs, rent and livelihood.
Toward the latter half of my tenure
in loss prevention, my focus shifted more toward these boosters. In
fact, numerous companies are asking their loss prevention staff to
focus more on the boosters. Why? Because they lose the most money from
these career criminal groups as opposed to the teenagers stealing video
games. Think about the numbers here:
Let’s say that opportunists
steal an average of $30 worth of merchandise each time they hit a
store. Let’s also say they hit on average of ten times a month. These
parameters are pretty typical in a lower risk market (which we’ll talk
about more), so we can say that opportunists cause a loss of $300 per
month.
Now let’s say that boosters steal an average of $500 each
time they steal from a store. Let’s also say they hit on average of two
times a month. Again, these are typical parameters in a lower risk
market. This means that boosters cause a loss of $1000 per month.
Does
it make sense now why companies want their loss prevention associates
to focus on the organized retail crime piece instead of the
opportunist? Professional shoplifters affect the bottom line much more
than opportunists do.
Targeted Merchandise
Opportunists will steal anything, naturally. They steal because they
want something or because they can’t afford something or even because
they simply enjoy the “rush” of stealing. Make-up, DVDs, clothes and
jewelry are frequently targeted by these types of thieves.
Boosters
target specific merchandise. Their merchandise is typically high value
merchandise with a high resell value at pawn shops. If they plan on
concealing the merchandise, it is better if it is smaller in size,
however, this doesn’t always matter to most professional thieves.
Believe it or not, boosters often simply walk out with “exposed”
merchandise! Examples of booster-preferred merchandise include: razor
refills, white strips, printer ink, power tools, TVs, baby formula, box
set DVDs, Oil of Olay products and leather jackets to name a few!
Shoplifting Markets
There are a number of
types of shoplifting markets out there. Typically, though, large
corporations (like my old one) group markets into either “high risk” or
“low risk” categories. Low risk markets tend to be in high-income,
low-crime rate neighborhoods. High risk markets tend to be in
lower-income, higher-crime rate neighborhoods. This isn’t always the
case across the board, but it is a good outline most companies follow.
Opportunists
abound in both low and high-risk markets. They tend to steal from
stores nearby. They won’t typically travel long distances simply to
steal because stealing is an impulsive for them. Opportunists are
typically teenagers simply because of their rebelliousness. There are
adult opportunists, for certain, but I have found that they usually
suffer from depression or have some sort of disorder- kleptomania for
example.
Boosters also abound in both low and high-risk markets.
They will steal from any store they can get to either by driving
(typical) or flying (for the elite pros!). Boosters are typically
adults who know what they’re getting into and who have bills to pay.
The trends are changing, however, and boosters of various ages are
appearing more frequently. Sometimes younger children are being
recruited simply because they might be less likely to be watched by
security (in the minds of criminals).
Stories of People I’ve Apprehended
Here’s the part that is the most fun but I need to be careful for
obvious reasons. I’ll share two stories with you but I’ll leave out
enough details so that people will not be able to figure out my old
company, details of when/how to apprehend, etc. So let’s get right to
it!
One of my earliest “big” busts was when I caught a guy
doing fraudulent returns. I organized his case file and another store
eventually caught him. He had a security clearance (which he lost!), a
large house, wife and couple of kids. Total case value: around $25,000.The
oldest booster I caught was around 70 years old. When he exited the
store with a cart full of merchandise, he was on his cell phone. I
brought him back into the office and he kept telling me, “I had no cell
phone reception so I was going outside to get a signal.” I responded by
telling him, “I hope you were calling your lawyer!”
Anyway,
I have a TON of stories like these, some funny, some dangerous, but I
had better stop here! I don’t want to keep writing and make a thirty
page hub! So there you have it! This was my hub on how to shoplift or
steal – thieves in action. Again, this is a hub on the “business” of
shoplifting and loss prevention. I hope it has given you some insight
into the lives of professional, criminal shoplifters.
Next time
you are shopping at your innocent neighborhood retail store, keep in
mind that there is probably someone either on the cameras or on the
sales floor looking for shoplifters. For a fun game, try walking the
store looking for the secret shopper. You can spice things up by
putting on sunglasses and walking around with high value merchandise
(AT YOUR OWN RISK, OF COURSE). I’ve done it before with some surprising
results!
Just remember, never break the law and never do something that could
get you in trouble with loss prevention, the police or management. And
I’ll warn you- you probably won’t get a friendly loss prevention agent
if you “find” them. They might be angry that you gave their identity
away. So, just forget I said any of that!
Some final thoughts:
Don’t steal, period.I can’t be held liable for anyone’s interpretation of this hub. It’s purpose was entertainment.If you’re thinking of working for loss prevention, DO IT. It might be the most fun you’ve ever had at work!Shoplifting occurs more frequently than you might think…
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