A debate took over TikTok after a user posted a video of herself being robbed on her first day on the job.
In the video posted by user Lauryn (@lauryn.chavez), security camera footage shows her handing over bundles of cash to someone whom she identifies as a thief.
“Me doing well on my first day at my new job,” she wrote in the overlay text at the beginning of the video, which shows her smiling and talking. In the part that shows the alleged robbery, she then wrote, “I get robbed.” The text also claims that this is the first time the location has ever been robbed.
The video currently has over 1.1 million views.
@lauryn.chavez My register didn’t even have that much money in it…
♬ original sound – Come Drinker
The debate centered around how calmly Lauryn seemed to be handling the situation, with many saying that she should have done more to stop it.
“Why would u hand it over so nicely too,” one user wrote.
“Lmao I personally wouldn’t let that slide. But that’s just me,” another added.
“Pls i thought u were just handing him change,” a third shared. “why were both of u so peaceful.”
However, according to numerous legal and criminology experts, what Lauryn did was exactly what someone should do in such a situation.
In 2015, police from Charlotte, North Carolina provided the Charlotte Observer with a bulleted list of what to do while being robbed.
While the list contains points like “Try to get a good look at the robber so you can describe him later” and “Note his direction of travel when he leaves,” its first point is bolded and in all caps: “DO NOT RESIST!”
This advice tracks with guidelines from many other businesses and localities.
For example, a report detailing theft prevention at 7-Eleven claims that employees are told to “[cooperate] with the robber by giving up the money, and never resisting, staring, talking unnecessarily, or arguing.” On its website, the town of Taylor, Michigan also advises: “Do not resist the robber. The money is not worth risking a life.”
Other users on TikTok agreed with this idea.
“I, too, would hand it over without a fight,” a user offered. “No risking our lives for a corporation’s money.”
In the comments section, Lauryn agreed.
“If y’all wanna go toe to toe with a robber then be my guest, but I’m not gonna protect $200 for an insured multi billion dollar company,” she wrote.
She echoed this in a follow-up TikTok, in which she explains the whole story of the robbery.
Overall, users were simply happy that Lauryn made it out of the situation OK.
As one user wrote, “Sounds like you handled it well, so sorry you went thru this…glad you’re ok!”
We’ve reached out to Lauryn via TikTok comment.
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