A TikToker named Kasey (@mrs_brown05) says that she inadvertently committed a crime during a Walmart grocery run. She delineated her experience in a TikTok storytime which she recorded from the interior of her car.
It all began, she says, on the ride back home from the store. As she was driving back home with her food haul, she tried to recall how much the damage was. Typically, the mom adds, her husband will reach out to her and ask what she spent at the store. However, it soon dawned on Kasey that she had no idea whatsoever off the top of her head.
Which was strange, as this question from her significant other is a commonplace one. In fact, it’s so routine that Kasey says she usually cuts him off before he even has a chance to ask it.
@mrs_brown05 I mean Jesus did already pay the price for the groceries. 😆 #momlife #ipromiseidontalwayssteal #selfcheckout ♬ original sound – Kasey 🖤
How much did I spend again?
At this point, Kasey found herself drawing a complete blank. She didn’t even have a ballpark idea as to what she dropped on the Walmart food items. Simultaneously, she also found herself struggling to remember which card she used to pay for the food.
“Did I use the debit card? Or did I use our credit card?” she wondered aloud as she spoke to her viewers. With no recollection of which card she used to pay for the groceries, she rang her husband. “So I call him and I said hey will you check to see if there’s a charge on the credit card?” she narrates.
“So he checks and he says, no.” With that avenue blocked, Kasey elected to remember what she paid the old-fashioned way. “So I thought OK, well, let me get my receipt out and see how much.”
However, it didn’t take long for the social media user to realize that she didn’t have a receipt. Further processing the situation, Kasey kept driving down the road when it finally hit her.
‘I left Walmart without paying’
She went on to say that she subconsciously “walked right out” of the store “without paying for them.” But how did this happen? According to Kasey, it all began with a simple request from a Walmart employee.
While the TikToker was at check-out, they approached her and asked if they could take her shopping cart. Kasey obliged, removing both her purse and all of the groceries she had “just rung up.”
This must’ve triggered a muscle memory response from Kasey. That’s because after scooping up her purse and bags from the cart, she left the store.
The only trouble is that she never swiped her card. Furthermore, it’s not like she just immediately jetted from the establishment, either.
“I talked to a detective from our local police department that I know. I talked to the door greeter because my mom was manager at Walmart,” she says. “And my son actually works at Walmart now. So, we know everybody that’s at Walmart.”
And the entire time she was conversing with members of her community, she had a stash of stolen goods in her hand.
She turned right back around
Kasey high-tailed it back to Walmart, anticipating that she would be speaking with the detective about the issue. Immediately after arriving back at the Walmart, she noticed the employee who helped her was “devastated.”
The young employee thought she’d be in trouble with management for allowing someone to leave the store without paying. Kasey then approached the greeter and admitted to leaving without paying for her groceries.
The greeter was well abreast of the stolen merchandise situation. What did come as a surprise, however, was that Kasey was the accidental thief.
Kasey then illustrated how staff helped her pay for her items on the second go-around. And it seemed like a rather painless process. “Thankfully, she had suspended the order. So I did not have to take all my groceries back in and re-scan them,” she says. “The little girl just kept apologizing to me and telling me thank you for coming back.”
Surprise
Kacey expressed her shock at how remorseful the worker was for the incident. “She apologized to me…like she had done something wrong. When I was the one who stole the groceries.”
Ultimately, the issue was resolved. Toward the end of the video, Kasey says she was grateful to spot her error so quickly. The last thing she wanted, she says, was to see security camera footage of her on a Facebook page.
She signed off her message with a mini-pep talk to her viewers. And it’s that if anyone is having a bad day, at least they’re not stealing $250 worth of groceries from Walmart.
Self-checkout woes
Walmart has previously been at the center of controversy involving its self-checkout systems. The New York Times reported on a lawsuit involving the store’s POS system, and a shopper wrongfully accused of theft.
The end result? The store had to shell out $2.1 million dollars after the customer was wrongfully arrested. Kasey’s Walmart story also seems to be a stark contrast to the one uploaded by this next TikToker, however.
The Daily Dot previously reported on an influencer who recorded themselves attempting to steal. After being caught, she says she was banned from shopping at Walmart stores for 2 years. Like Kasey, no criminal charges were filed. On the flip side, she hasn’t appeared to express any remorse for the theft. Nor did she mention attempting to purchase the items, either.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Walmart via email and Kasey via TikTok comment for further information.
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