A FRUSTRATED shopper has called out a store’s new anti-theft measure as they claim it negatively impacts specific customers.
The Canadian resident argued online that many shoppers in Winnipeg, Manitoba, are seeing an increase in police presence at some retailers.
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Through a lengthy blog post, they claimed that the Winnipeg Police Department is now placing special units dedicated to preventing shoplifting at several Winnipeg Superstore locations, per MRonline.
“Have you noticed police officers inside your local grocery store entrance?” the shopper asked.
“Maybe you haven’t because not all Winnipeg grocery stores are hiring Special Duty Winnipeg Police Service officers to stand guard at the front of their grocery stores — Winnipeg Superstore locations seem to be the most common place to find police.”
They continued to claim that despite what officers “would have us believe” about their presence to mitigate theft, the result is allegedly often “scrutiny, racialization, and criminalization” for customers of color.
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“If police presence in grocery stores is ‘business as usual,’ some Winnipeg residents have become increasingly concerned about this practice,” the blog read.
They added that there were alleged reports of several people of color claiming they were racially discriminated against at stores by Winnipeg police officers.
“Winnipeg media has covered several instances of Indigenous shoppers speaking out against racial profiling and criminalization by police officers in grocery stores,” the shopper claimed.
A specific instance from a 2019 interview with the CBC was mentioned by the fuming shopper as an example of alleged racial profiling by officers on duty in a store location.
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The customer in question, Chris Wescoupe, recalled an encounter with police at a Superstore location where he was allegedly speaking with an officer at the front of the store, and another officer came up and told him to leave.
Wescoupe claimed the officer told him he was flagged as someone who had “previously stolen” and, therefore, was not allowed to shop.
“With no evidence and no opportunity to speak to the manager, Wescoupe was denied service and told that he would be arrested if he didn’t leave,” the blog writer alleged.
Wescoupe, an Indigenous man, claimed he’d never shoplifted before, and according to the CBC report, he had no prior criminal record.
Jenna Comegan, another Indigenous shopper in Winnipeg, also spoke with CBC about a similar situation, according to the MROnline blog.
She said she was left “humiliated and traumatized” after an officer at a Superstore location designated to prevent theft allegedly grabbed her and held her arm until she offered a receipt for proof of purchase.
Other complaints from shoppers in the Winnipeg area online of the anti-theft police included “being followed to the parking lot, having their license plates noted, being mocked if they indicate they are going to file a complaint, and having officers refuse to give their badge numbers.”
“Instead of accepting the normalization of increased policing, we should be considering the impacts it has on those most disproportionately affected and whether this means some individuals will lose safe access to food and face increased criminalization,” the shopper argued.
“Police presence in grocery stores does not make for safer grocery stores, instead it actively makes grocery stores unsafe spaces for those who are most often targeted by police surveillance, which in Winnipeg is Indigenous peoples, black people, and people of colour.”
The U.S. Sun has contacted the Winnipeg Police Department for an official comment on the claims of racial discrimination in the post.
As The U.S. Sun previously reported, increases in police presence at stores around the United States are also occurring.
The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office in California has designated a special task force to undergo joint operations with retailers.
In Bellevue, Washington, police also have stakeouts outside some stores and wait for employees to text them a code word to apprehend someone if they suspect shoplifting, per NPR.
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For more on anti-theft, check out The U.S. Sun’s coverage of the most controversial policies in retail.
The U.S. Sun also has the story on why Walmart shoppers have slammed a “failed” anti-theft measure at locations around the country.
https://www.the-sun.com/news/9776537/shopper-blasts-new-anti-theft-measures-certain-customers/