Countdown staff confronted thieves as they tried to leave with a loaded trolley.
Video / Supplied
An Auckland councillor says he and his community have had enough of retail thieves, labelling offenders as “feral bums” and recommending that they face “harsh consequences”.
Daniel Newman, Auckland councillor for the Manurewa-Papakura Ward, spoke to Newstalk ZB after a video went viral showing staff at a PapakuraCountdown supermarket fighting back against two thieves.
“I’m outraged that a couple of feral bums believe that they are entitled to steal what is not theirs,” Newman told ZB, saying he had “no tolerance” for the offending, which he said disrupted the lives of law-abiding citizens.
“Unfortunately there is a group of people in our community who believe that they are entitled to steal.
“Shoplifting is rife and it causes a real challenge for retailers, it also drives up the price of goods and services for everybody else.”
Newman called for financial sanctions to be applied to any beneficiaries who were caught shoplifting, saying there had to be “harsh consequences” for the behaviour.
“The people who are committing these offences are people who need to go and get a job, who need to make an honest living,” he said.
Staff tipped the trolley to the floor to prevent it being taken from the store. Photo / Supplied
He said that issue had been present for some time, but social media had highlighted it.
“This does paint our community in a bad light but our community, by and large, has a very low tolerance for people who conduct themselves in this way.”
He also said that punishments for those caught shoplifting needed to be tougher to reflect the impact of this type of crime.
“Obviously our criminal justice system needs to recognise that shoplifting is a serious crime and the punishment needs to fit that,” he told ZB.
‘Sick of it’
Carlene Mataira recorded the video on Sunday morning at Countdown Papakura and says that she has witnessed similar offending the last two times she visited the store.
The dramatic clip shows two women attempting to leave the store with a trolley full of groceries, as two staff attempt to wrestle it back.
One staff member’s efforts see him gripping a railing to brace against the two women’s attempts to yank the trolley away, only for his grip to hold and the railing come free.
The women threaten violence against the staff and tell them they were “not allowed to touch” them.
One staff member eventually tips the trolley to the ground, leaving the women to snatch some items from the floor and beat a hasty retreat, with one appearing to suffer a wardrobe malfunction.
“I’m sick of it, it’s happening way too much, especially in Papakura,” Mataira told the Herald.
“I hurt for the staff that have to put up with this.”
The cheeky thieves made a hasty exit. Photo / Supplied
Police, Countdown respond
A police spokesperson said they received a report of theft from a commercial premises on Great South Rd, Papakura around 8.20am on Sunday.
“Police attended and made inquiries,” said the spokesperson.
A police spokesperson said it took a community approach to crack down on theft crimes.
“While Police have an important role to play, it is not something we can combat alone,” they said.
“Police worked with retail groups and retailers in an effort to prevent theft through environmental design to plan the layout and design of a shop, through education training to teach workers how to use Auror. (Auror is a retail crime intelligence platform).
“We rely on retailers to report thefts to us, as this enables us to put our efforts and resources into the right places. Police would absolutely encourage retailers to report theft as soon as possible after it happens, to allow us the best possible opportunity of taking action.”
The police spokesperson said an immediate response to a retail theft was not always required but was assuring retailers there are a number of steps they take to follow up, such as reviewing CCTV footage for evidence if this was available.
“Police are committed to targeting crime of any nature and holding offenders to account.”
A Countdown spokesperson said the company didn’t comment on individual incidents, which could put team members at risk.
“The safety and wellbeing of our team and communities is our absolute priority and the measures we have in place are designed with this in mind.
“We are always reviewing our health and safety controls to ensure we’re doing everything we can to keep our team and customers safe in our stores.”
Countdown was working with police and other retailers to develop solutions to the rise in retail crime and customer aggression.
