Walgreens closing 5 more San Francisco stores over shoplifting fears
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
SAN FRANCISCO — Walgreens said Tuesday that it will close five more stores in San Francisco next month because of organized retail theft in another blow to a city that has earned an embarrassing reputation for widespread and brazen shoplifting.
The stores will close down next month, SFGATE reported. It said Walgreens has closed at least 10 stores in the city since the start of 2019.
"Retail theft across our San Francisco stores has continued to increase in the past few months to five times our chain average" despite large increases in security, Walgreens spokesperson Phil Caruso said.
San Francisco Supervisor Ahsha Safai said he was devastated by the loss of a Mission Street store that "has been a staple for seniors, families and children for decades."
"This is a sad day for San Francisco," Safai told SFGATE. "We can't continue to let these anchor institutions close that so many people rely on."
Last year, Walgreens closed one store where the chain said it was losing $1,000 a day to thefts.
Frustration and fear over thefts have been fueled by widely circulating images of shoplifting caught on video. This summer, shoplifters in masks carrying armfuls of designer handbags sprinted from a downtown Neiman Marcus department store and into getaway cars.
In June, a masked man was caught on video at a Walgreens, stuffing items into a trash bag before cruising out of the store on a bicycle. A suspect was arrested in that theft.
Last month, Mayor London Breed and Police Chief Bill Scott announced that they will dedicate more police, beef up coordination and make it easier to report shoplifters.
The strategy aims to counter thieving that has added to the liberal city's reputation as being soft on crime.
"We care about criminal justice reform. We care about second chances. We care about making sure that people are not wrongly accused," Breed in announcing the new measures. "But don't take our kindness for weakness, our compassion for weakness."
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I'd rather spend the thousand dollars a day on five burly security guards than let them steal it. 25 years ago I went to a liquor store near RFK in DC (a bad area/housing project) and it was an empty room with windows with products in view and a bank teller type window. You ordered what you wanted and paid and they gave you your order in the drawer or if it was a case of beer through a cabinet with locking doors on either side. Shoplifting was impossible and employee theft couldn't be blamed on customers so it probably worked real well..
They ought to shoot the shoplifters. Shoot the fuckers dead. That will put an end to this shit right away. Plus, it will rid society of some shitbags society is better off without.
Having seen the videos that are referred to in the seed, and even more, that went through my head as well, but shoot them in the legs to disable them rather than kill them. That way the goods are recovered and the criminals will be dealt with. I have zero sympathy for the looters.
“and the criminals will be dealt with.”
but the way dems deal with criminals won’t work. Dems will simply let them go and they’ll be back to their sleazeball, shitbag ways the same day. Society is better off if they are permanently removed.
That is how Nazis spoke about the Jews...
There is a huge, major, difference between jews and criminals that screw over society and law abiding citizens by taking advantage of soft laws. Geez, what a stupid post.
Then you would have shot and killed Jean Valjean, the starving man in Les Miserables who stole a loaf of bread he could not afford to buy. Let each be judged and punished according to their own level of guilt.
That is so messed up it is hard to decide were to begin. How much liability insurance will malls need if security gards are going to start shooting at all the shoplifters? A gazillion trillion billion million dollars!
No wonder people shop online instead of in malls.
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No, what is fucked up is you thinking that shooting petty criminals in malls is an answer.
Petty crime predates all modern ideologies.
Snatch and runs happened in Mesopotamia.
Criminals will always be taking advantage of one as long as one keeps kissing their ass. No penalty, no repercussions, no problem for the criminal mind. That’s what they want.
it's a bad situation all around, Security costs money but comes with liabilities not just from security hurting perps but from perps hurting security, often the clerks are afraid to confront the perps and rightfully so. People rely on these stores especially elderly folks so something has to be done. I think we need tougher penalties when they're caught, no more slaps on the wrist. Also if I were Walgreens I hire off duty cops to run stings at various stores, lots of cameras in the store and once you've identified a perp you arrest them in the parking lot with enough force to do it safely. By moving this security force around to random stores they could put a big dent in these thefts, even if the justice system is a revolving door the perps will go steal from some other chain.
Yet, you want mall cops to shoot shoplifters and have the gall to get indignant about it...
I do not think you get how ridiculous that is.
What about all of the innocent bystanders?
Don't you think somebody thought this out?
Shooting people isn't a good way to fix this.
A thousand bucks a day puts a store out of business. Walgreens is a big company and can close the store and absorb the loss but a Mom and Pop business cannot. These "Petty" thefts destroy businesses and destroy a lifetime of work and investment and that's not Petty at all.
I wouldn't recommend shooting anyone who doesn't need shooting. That's why I'd rather use cops and arrest the perps in the parking lot. If a perp pulls a weapon he needs shooting so F it, if they resist but have no weapon taze them. Security shouldn't have to brawl with perps to arrest them. When stores are closing because of shoplifting it's obvious things must change, how do you think Detroit ended up with all those so called "Food Deserts".
Where did i say mall cops? Point that out and i will admit you are right, [Deleted]
Then who do you imagine shooting shoplifters?
How much insurance do you think is necessary to cover the losses due to dumbfuck Democratic "policies"??
Bunch of dumbasses elected these fools to pass these kind of dumbfuck laws, so they get what they wanted so badly.
I hope all sane business owners revolt and leave a state where criminals are given priority over businesses that pay taxes and employ people, besides providing people with goods needed.
Now you are just being hysterical. Walgreens is not pulling out of California and they are not closing San Francisco locations because they are not allowed to shoot shoplifters!
Total Drugstores - 9,021
Through August 31, 2020 Includes all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin IslandsMaine
14
Puerto Rico
U.S. Virgin Islands
Total 9,021
© 2021 Walgreen Co. All rights reserved
Seriously, dude, what in the FUCK did you read???????????
Hysterical?
Hardly.
Please learn what the fuck an opinion is and stop the melodramatic bullshit.
Tell you what--you live in that rat hole Democrats created.
You and the shoplifters will be quite happy, I'm sure.
Can you tell me what POSSIBLE good you see in policies that almost encourage shoplifters?
Can you tell me what good you see in companies having to abandon markets because dumbfuck Democratic policies put their business at risk?
Can you tell me how people living in the neighborhoods which were serviced by stores who leave will be positively affected by the results of dumbfuck Democratic policies?
And for the record--since you obviously didn't read my comment or understand it (surely you weren't trying to put words in my mouth again and then debate what the fuck you invented), I never said even ONE fucking word about Walgreen's or any other business abandoning the state OR even one fucking word about shooting anyone.
Get real. dude.
Debate what I write, not the crap you invent.
SMMFH
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A new Mexican food restaurant just opened up in Beijing......
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No surprise as progressive governance does its damndest to make even the most wealthy cities unlivable.
No surprise here:
One way to deal with shoplifters is to hire off-duty police officers for security.
They can make arrests and they know how to testify in court.
They also know it's ridiculous to "gun down" shoplifters.
Yes, and when one reads the article, they magically discover that Walgreen's DID hire extra security and STILL had to close stores.
Dumbfuck Democratic policies are responsible for this travesty.
As long as the liberal courts in blue states insist on treating perps with kid gloves and letting them off scott free back into society, said problems will persist and most likely increase. So glad I live in rural SE Arizona instead of the fecal receptacle San Francisco in the cesspool state called California!
Shoplifting is just a misdemeanor in my state. Most likely won't get any jail time.
Shoplifting like picking up an item and putting it under your jacket is one thing, but when you fill up a big green garbage bag with items and run out of the store, as I saw in the news videos, that is a little extreme to be considered just shoplifting.
Point being, if the same kinda laws are here, what is the difference...
Yeah, I guess if you backed up a truck to the door and emptied the store shelves it would still be just shoplifting.
I am talking about similar laws in not so similar places.
I know here there is a threshold, a dollar amount before it is a felony.
Plus with shoplifting, we have a three strike law.
It's not shoplifting it's strong arm robbery. The brazenness of the crime infers the threat of violence. Anyone with any sense knows a thief like that who doesn't care that you know they're stealing isn't going to peacefully allow you to stop them.
Here's an idea. Many stores have electronic devices on poles prior to the exit doors that can detect items that have not been scanned at the cash registers. How about that they activate a control when they detect an item that was not scanned and automatically cause all doors to immediately shut and lock.
Then they would probably just break the windows and/or glass doors. I mean if they go to the trouble of filling trash bags with items to steal, what's a window or door thrown in?
That has the potential to put innocent, law abiding citizens in harms way if the criminals feel trapped and get desperate. Better to nab them outside the store. Catalogue the stolen items, question them, get as much info from them as possible because many of these thugs are part of organized theft rings, then rid the planet of their existence.
Here's an idea. Do exactly what Walgreens is doing and move stores out of that area. If people complain that they can't get their prescriptions and whatever, then they need to do something about their neighborhoods.
Welcome to America.
Shoplifting carries a minimum penalty of three years to a maximum of ten (plus a fine) in the People’s Republic of China.
Really? I guess that explains why I've always been so amazed that stores and vendors hardly lock things up overnight - in many cases just throwing a canvas over their wares, fruit, veggies, etc. because they know that nobody is going to try to grab anything. And bank guards do not have guns. However, I have heard that there have been pickpockets, and there are guards at the doors of some apartment buildings (like mine) and there are gated communities, so China is not entirely free of petty crime. More serious crime is VERY strictly dealt with.
I imagine so with penalties like 3 to 10 yrs for shoplifting which US courts see as a petty crime. It works though and I bet the rate of recidivism is very low.
`OR, simply close the store , and not do business in that jurisdiction , no place is entitled to have someone operate any business anywhere if conditions are not to their liking .
Unfortunately that causes a real problem for elderly and disabled persons who may have difficulty getting to a store far away in order to fill their life-preserving prescriptions. I would suggest that a small pharmacy be opened where only necessary usual drugs (e.g. aspirin), and drugs and appliances requiring prescriptions be stored behind the counter with metal grills like one sees in some pawn shops are located - i.e. nothing anyone can just grab.
Morning...would be interesting to know after the riots with all the burning of supermarkets and shops etc....how the locals are now fairing???
Or was it more the case of outsiders creating all the mess and mayhem and then all going back to their comfy homes...and leaving all the destruction to others to suffer... especially the elderly and infirm.
Has any TV reporters gone back to see what the go is???
Buzz , im willing to bet they looked at all the options before deciding to close , walgreens is not just a pharmacy , they have snack food first aide supplies ,hair care products aftershave perfume , you name it if its small and health and beauty related they likely have it , i doubt it would be worth it to clear everything else out and just have the pharmacy end , so best they can do is simply close and walk away , they are under no obligation to make anyones life easier for convienience , they after all have to make a profit as well .
maybe the state can open a little state pharmacy in its place .
I don't know. I'm as far away from it as you are.
Seems to me that the only solution would be for anyone who knows who the culprits are to provide that info to the authorities, but I assume that they would more likely fear retribution.
Shona - totally off topic - but - sent my Brother in Law (Lives in Victoria) a plastic bag (from WalMarts) with 10 clothing items for our new, soon-to-be, one y.o. niece on Wednesday and it should arrive next Wednesday. Weight? 1.3 pounds. Cost to ship??????? $411.91.
No more for her
Anoon 1st...cricky you could have almost brought it out yourself on a plane...hmmm not sure about arriving in a week...all the post is up the creek as there is a massive backlog and they stopped delivery for a week..
I posted a box 4 kilo about 2 years ago to England. Went by ship took 3 months to get there and that was $100... which was not to bad....
Did you get your new kitty??
I live in Victoria as well...small world..
Oh for the days of FPO's (Fleet Post Offices). When our amphibious group of 3 ships pulled in Sydney in 81, I mailed a 5 pound box to my kids in Arizona and it did not cost me a cent courtesy of the US Navy!
There have been mass store robberies in the Michigan Avenue area of downtown Chicago. That district is very important to tourism in Chicago. It will be cracked down on , but these things take a little time.
In the 1930's they created task forces to go after the Dillingers and Baby Face Nelsons. They need to get something like that going federally, related to these mass shoplifting cases.