A shopkeeper has been accused of stealing $12,000 worth of packages of meat from supermarket shelves on more than two dozen occasions, but online reaction has supported his actions rather than condemning them.
The alleged thief was recently caught picking up prime cuts of meat, including Wagyu beef, at a Drakes supermarket in South Australia.
Shocking CCTV footage captured the moment the man, dressed in a bright orange high-visibility jacket, placed the meat parcels inside his insulated bag.
Just five minutes later, he slowly walked through the supermarket checkout without paying for the products.
The alleged thief has been accused of carrying out the act a whopping 27 times from the supermarket.
A man wearing a high-visibility jacket (pictured) is alleged to have stolen expensive cuts of meat worth $12,000 more than 27 times.
Drakes Supermarkets director John Paul Drake said the company has been forced to install GPS trackers on its meat products in a bid to stop people stealing the expensive item.
“We know these products are not going to people in need, people in need don’t need to have pure Wagyu or Angus beef on their tables,” he said. A current issue.
The company reported the man’s brazen actions to the police.
A South Australian police spokeswoman told the Daily Mail that Australian officers are currently investigating the alleged theft.
Data from Auror, a platform that provides retailers with technology solutions to reduce the number of stolen products, found that more than 67,000 incidents of stolen meat were recorded last year.
Beef is the most commonly stolen item, followed by chicken, lamb and pork.
‘Meat is the number one option that the [thieves] we’re chasing,” Mr. Drake said.
The man allegedly stole dozens of packages of expensive meat (pictured) before leaving without paying, as seen on CCTV.
Drakes Supermarkets director John Paul Drake (pictured, centre) said the company has been forced to install GPS trackers to curb meat theft.
Drake has uploaded several videos to social media identifying alleged thieves who have been caught on CCTV cameras stealing meat.
He confronted a man at a Drakes supermarket in Adelaide who allegedly tried to leave the store without paying.
“I said, look buddy, I know things are tough out there, but this is not the place to go out with products like this.”
Drake said he confronted a man who was allegedly trying to steal packages of meat from a store in Adelaide. Beef is the most stolen meat product in supermarkets (pictured)
The man’s alleged actions come as Australians continue to express frustration over the cost of living and the amount they spend on food.
The reaction to the images of the store in the supermarket, for example, was largely in its favor, with shoppers criticizing large supermarkets for their prices.
“A lot of people are struggling to feed themselves, while places like ww (Woolworths) pay their CEOs around $10 million a year,” said one shopper.
“I don’t even consider a gift here and there to be theft.”
‘Stop charging ridiculous amounts of money. If that action were not [allegedly] “If it gets stolen they throw it in the trash like everything else,” another person wrote.
‘Woolworth made $1.74 billion in profits last year! Who is scamming who in these situations?
While much of the anger was directed at Coles and Woolworths, one commenter claimed that Drakes, where the CCTV was captured, “are the same… just on a smaller scale”.
Drake said stolen packages of meat cost the supermarket chain up to $12 million a year.
Two Drakes stores in South Australia installed GPS trackers in their meat products last month – the first supermarkets in Australia to use the technology.
GPS tracks items once they leave the store and provides retailers with data they can share with police.
Drakes is understood to be considering using the technology across its 67 stores in South Australia and Queensland.
Earlier this year, the Albanian government launched an ACCC investigation into the sector to review supermarket prices.
The review was ordered following accusations of price gouging by major supermarket chains.
This week, a Greens-led Senate Select Committee on Supermarket Pricing also recommended making price gouging illegal, as well as introducing new laws to break up Australia’s supermarket duopoly.
