A meatpacker bags the goods

Bagging the store

I visited my local Sainsbury’s to get a few essentials and late as it was, the crowds could be avoided, but that meant the brand of filtered whole milk I wanted was out of stock.

As I moved around the aisles wondering if I did need some other things including the pork pies I am trying to swear myself off, a taller man probably oblivious of my shorter stature, swung round to place 4 packs of meats on the shelf in front of me. Not wanting to be in his way, I moved on as he opened his rucksack and stuffed the packs in.

Strange, I thought as we would normally get a shopping basket and go to the self-service tills or the manned check-outs to pay for our goods. This looked like he was up to no good. Coming back up another aisle, he was packing other packets into his bag. It looked like he had come for a raid.

Not this time, chap

It got me thinking of why insurance premiums are increased year-on-year, not only due to inflation but for the abuse of insurance claims and criminal activity. I also notice how the prices of common goods go up by 5% or 10%, in the shop, maybe to cover losses due to thefts or to pay for the security staff who prevent them.

I was not going to intervene not knowing what this chap might be up to, having filled up his rucksack, he had a few things in his hands to have checked-out at a manned till, as if to suggest that was all he came to the store for. Unfortunately for him, an eagle-eyed scout had spotted his antics, so he was accosted at the till and asked to show the contents of his rucksack by the security guard.

Without much fuss, he emptied his rucksack, had it inspected and when he was relieved of all the goods, he was allowed to leave. Surprised, I was when I expected the police to be called. Then maybe rather than bother themselves with the unwieldy involvement of law enforcement and maybe their indifference to petty theft, they would just have taken a picture of the face and enforced a total ban on his returning to the shop.

It could get worse

One can only wonder where he might have brazenly and successfully raided a shop without detention. Nothing of what I saw him do was by stealth, he either thought he’ll wing it and give up on this store and try elsewhere when the staff or preparing to close shop and inattentive to customers playing funny games.

I could not call what he was doing shoplifting, there was too much involved, it looked like shop-bagging, my fear is with his size first and just a feeling of desperation, he might become daring and violent. At that point, I do wonder if letting him go lays in store a more dangerous bandit for the next time.