I have been a victim of Wal-mart loss prevention myself. First of all I would like to say that my mother has been an employee of Wal-mart for ten years. And I am also a former employee of Wal-mart, but only in the pharmacy becuase it was its own seperate intity. I didn't agree with the way that they treated their employees and I sure didn't want to work in any other parts of the store.
My mom is just barely getting by every paycheck and her income level just barely goes over the poverty line, and she's single. My mom has a terminal illness and the only reason why she has stayed with Wal-mart so long is becuase of her situation. She would not be able to get insurance any where else with her pre-existing condition.
I have also been a Wal-mart customer since they opened the first store here in my town in 1992. I am a single mother of three boys and Wal-mart has been a haven for me becuase of the cheap prices. Since they opened a new Supercenter here about 4 years ago, it has been the only store that I ever shop at. I did everything there, groceries, clothes, toys, pet supplies, film developing, and the pharmacy just to name a few. Basically Wal-mart was my life, I never went any where else.
Well on Saturday June 12, my six-year-old son and I went to Wal-mart to get some items. First I purchased about $60.00 worth of personal items through one of the self check-outs and had several sacks in my cart. Well, my son needed a hair-cut so I took him to Smart Style to get it done. While I was waiting I forgot that I needed to pick up a kennel for my kittens that my cat had just given birth to. So while he was getting his haircut I went to the pet aisle and got the kennel and went through another self check-out and payed for the kennel.
I went and picked up my son from getting his hair-cut and headed to the Pharmacy to pick up a perscription I had dropped off. While I was leaving the pharmacy to go to film developing to pick up my one hour photo I noticed the loss prevention person watching me. I made a comment to him becuase he was a friend of mine and I continued to the back of the store.
I went and got my film developing and proceeded to the front of the store, I stopped at the service desk and talked with my mom for about 15 minutes, then I started heading out the front door. The door greeter Susi Reyes stopped me at the door and asked me for my receipt for the kennel. I should have had four different receipts in my hand but when I looked I only had three. So I told her that I possibly left the one receipt in the Pharmacy so she made me leave the kennel at the front door, but she let me take the rest of the items I had purchased with me. (And she didn't even look through my other stuff) I went back to the pharmacy and asked the cashier and she said she saw me put two receipts in my purse, to look in my purse and see if it was in there.
I could not find the receipt for the kennel. So I thought to myself if I go back up there and tell her I can't find my receipt they are going to accuse me of stealing the kennel. I didn't want to lose the $60.00 I had just paid for it, so I just went and grabbed another one of the shelf and walked out the other door with it. I was almost to the car and was practically tackled by 5 people. The one associate asked me if I had a receipt for the kennel and I told him that I did purchase the kennel and I told the door greeter I couldn't find my receipt. They asked me to come back into the store and I did.
While they were trying to find record of my purchase they proceeded to take me back to the "office". The store co-manager Lynette kept asking me if I payed for the kennel, and I kept telling her I payed for the kennel. She then told me that if I didn't admit to stealing the kennel that she would call the police and I would be arrested and my son would be put in foster care. I got so pissed off that she said that, so I said, 'call the F*ing police!' My son was scared and asking me if I was going to go to jail. The police were called and the officer came so I explained my story. He said becuase I didn't go back to the door greeter and rectify the situation then that is shoplifting. He wrote me a ticket and let me leave the store, but they kept the kennel.
These people that were involved never checked my other bags that I had and they only accused me of stealing this 4 foot by 3 foot box with a wire kennel in it. And when they checked their inventory control machine it did say that there was one kennel purchased on that day, but becuase I didn't have my receipt they said I stole it.
Well I went to court to plead on my shoplifting charge and plead no-contest. I plead that becuase the police officer told me becuase I didn't go back to the door greeter then that was considered shoplifting. When I entered my plea I was able to explain to the judge everything that happened on that day. The jugde proceeded to tell me that I already entered my plea but if I had plead Guilty he wouldn't have excepted it becuase he didn't feel I was guilty of shoplifting, but I had already plead so I couldn't change my plea. So he only fined me $60.00 the lowest fine for shoplifting.
Well two months has gone by and it has been really difficult not being able to go to Wal-mart. Now I have to drive 15 miles to another town to go to Family Dollar store. And to top it all off I called 1-800-Wal-mart and tried to see what I could do to rectify the situation and explain my side of the story, and possibly get back into the store. This rude B*ch on the other end of the phone was no help. She told me that Wal-Mart wants $113.94 from me for two times the price of the kennel that I SUPOSEDLY stole. She also said that I had to wait a year from the date of the incident and write the Wal-mart committee and ask them to let back in the store. That's a crock of sh*t!
At one time I thought Wal-Mart cared about its customers, but it's evident that they only are in business to make money and screw the little people, they don't care they have stores all over the US. I also don't like the fact that Lynette the co-manager tried to tell me that my son was going to be put in foster care and scaring him like that. And for Susi Reyes the door greeter she isn't a greeter, she's a gossiper! Everyone Susi has talked to, she has told them what happened with me, and she ins't suppose to speak about the situation becuase my mom still works there.
I am boycotting Wal-mart and I will be shopping at Walgreens and other stores within my community.
Wal-mart is nothing but a monopoly and they could give a sh*t less about the little people. Wal-mart can kiss my *ss and I will tell everyone I know about my experience with Wal-mart. If enough people voice there oppinion about Wal-mart maybe something will get done! Then again as long as they stay a monopoly in my community there is nothing I can do but just stay away from the store.
Mackenzie
Rock Springs, Wyoming
U.S.A.
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