My Comic & Game store got broken into and burgled.

[FitzTheRuke]

Practical experience tells me that's burglary in most jurisdictions. Robbery is when they steal from you face to face. Theft is when they sneak out with stuff without paying for it while the staff is there.

I believe that you are correct! Not working in crime (on either side) or the law, that's not my area of expertise, jargon-wise.

My last game store employer suffered two burglaries (front window bays smashed and looted), one actual robbery (unarmed, and the chump got half a block before staff and two customers tackled him and held him for the cops), and who knows how many thefts (shoplifting, the worst of which was a GW paint set the size of a large suitcase that was behind the counter and eight feet off the floor and my boss still didn't notice it was gone until I got back from the con I was manning a booth at). I missed all the action in every case, and I don't regret it.

I live a half a block away. The alarm company phoned me before they phoned the police. If I hadn't left my phone in the kitchen, I might have been down here first, and possibly found them still here. I'm a martial artist, with enough experience to know that I DON'T want to get into a fight with a burglar. So I'm kind of glad that it took until the police knocked on my door about a half-hour later that I found out about it.

The (much smaller) store I was in before that was in a dying mall and the only definite theft we had was a box of Marvel art cards (we did comics too) that some pre-teen lackwit thought we wouldn't notice missing two minutes after it was gone. I put my backup on the counter, strolled out to the front of the mall and found him opening the packs at the bus stop. The police were there in five minutes (dying or not, it was still a mall on a the city's main drag) and marched him back into the store, called his mother away from work, and when she showed up we negotiated an on-the-spot payment for all the (quite expensive) packs he'd wrecked to avoid pressing charges. By the look of terror in the kid's eyes and the mother's facial expression it was probably not the merciful option, and the police knew it as well as I did. Still, can't blame the boss (who wasn't even there, just on the phone) for not wanting to deal with small claims court to get the money, and I wasn't feeling one bit sympathetic for the underage moron at the time.

Not much now, either.

I've had quite a bit of shoplifters - some we've caught, mostly not. I honestly don't really want to know exactly how much that happens. I'm fine with blissful ignorance in this case.

 

[Wofano Wotanto]

I live a half a block away.

On our burglaries, the owner literally lived right over the store on the second floor of the building. With her windows open because it was summer. Never heard the break-ins and the motion alarm (her only security) never triggered, and still she never knew about it until one of my co-workers showed up to open the shop the next morning. The police informed us the broken windows should have taken five minutes work with a proper sledgehammer to break, the place having been a jewelry store at some point and having had security glass in the bays. And still she heard nothing.

Never did catch whoever did it.

I've had quite a bit of shoplifters - some we've caught, mostly not. I honestly don't really want to know exactly how much that happens. I'm fine with blissful ignorance in this case.

Yeah, you just have to shoot for controlling it and keeping losses to an acceptable level. It's always nice when you do catch someone red-handed, but no matter how tight your inventory controls are you'll never be sure about what you missed.

 

[jdrakeh]

I think shoplifters and other scammers are just part and parcel of owning a retail business these days. I know that my friend (who also owns a game store) has recently caught both shoplifters and people trying to use stolen credit cards to purchase goods, while another local shop had somebody pocket some M:tG singles after looking through the card boxes. And, as a former security guard at retail establishments, I estimate that for every such instance of theft/fraud that gets caught, there are probably three more that go undetected.

 

[Wofano Wotanto]

Cripes, you didn't have to change the thread title. "Robbed" is fine when you're not dealing with a police report or insurance agent.

The amount of cop/crook jargon I've picked up working retail is downright disturbing sometimes. Sigh.

 

[FitzTheRuke]

Cripes, you didn't have to change the thread title. "Robbed" is fine when you're not dealing with a police report or insurance agent.

The amount of cop/crook jargon I've picked up working retail is downright disturbing sometimes. Sigh.

Bah, we're all pedantic enough around these parts that I didn't want to make too many people cringe at my inaccuracy. It wasn't a big deal either way, of course, but it's "more correct" now.

 

[Lidgar]

Really sorry to hear this. Even with insurance, its still an ugly feeling when this happens. Glad it wasn't worse - that's definitely the right perspective to have.

 

[Wofano Wotanto]

It wasn't a big deal either way, of course, but it's "more correct" now.

Well, it is always more gooder to be righter.

 

[Warpiglet-7]

I am really sorry to hear this.

I hate that! I have been a victim of violent crime where I was also deprived of property as well…

People suck sometimes…but most of us pay our way gladly and appreciate people working in or owning stores and restaurants…

 

[FitzTheRuke]

Well, it is always more gooder to be righter.

Indeed. It's the bestest!

 

[Peter BOSCO'S]

Now that they know you have stuff they will be back to do it again. You need to get some large concrete crash barriers near all the doors ASARP to stop people from just crashing into the store in a stolen car to get in. This has happened to a number of CCG and sports card stores.