POLICE say they have been forced to take extreme measures due to an increase in self-checkout thefts at Walmart stores.
Police officers in Port St. Lucie, Florida, about 50 miles north of Palm Beach, said they had to make arrests due to “skip-scanning.”
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This term refers to people who use self-checkouts to deliberately avoid paying for certain items.
These shoppers may pay for some products but steal by packaging other items without scanning them.
Police said they have seen a sharp increase in thefts reported at the three Walmart supercenters in the area.
One of these stores had a 500% increase over the previous year, and more than 50% of these reports were about suspected “skip-scanners”.
City of Port St. Lucie Police Chief Richard Del Torro shared a video of two women who were arrested for shoplifting.
The video appeared to show how a suspect scanned one product but placed two in a shopping bag, according to the NBC affiliate. WPTV-TV.
“What people will do is scan some items and not scan others,” Del Torro said.
“I don’t think any loss is acceptable when you steal from someone.”
He shared a warning to thieves and added that they would continue to crack down on this type of retail theft.
“We are here to protect not only our people, but also our businesses and the people who frequent them,” the police chief said.
He also explained what led police officers to capture “skip-scanner” suspects.
“We solve around 87% of the crimes reported to us, therefore a very high resolution rate”,
“Often it’s because there’s a good video.
“We are tireless in our follow-up.”
Anti-theft measures implemented by retailers
Retailers in the US and Canada have implemented strategies designed to combat theft. The US Sun has compiled a list of measures that have been implemented in stores.
- Lock items in cabinets.
- Safety stakes.
- Security cameras.
- Signs warning about the impact of theft.
- Receipt scanners.
- Receipt checks.
- Carts with locking technology
This police department has confirmed that it will work with these three Walmart stores in a “multi-level approach” to prevent crime, according to a report. Press release.
This will include more police officers patrolling in and around stores.
JUMPING
A shocking survey has revealed that a large number of high-income earners have admitted to committing this self-checkout crime, The US Sun previously reported.
Nearly 20% of Americans earning six-figure salaries or more revealed that they had “skipped” items.
60% of those people said they felt bad about their actions, while 44% said they would probably do it again.
The US Sun has reached out to Walmart and the City of Port St. Lucie Police Department for comment.
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This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
