Shoplifting by Employee (Shrink)

Ten Percent of all employees will steal from their employers. Common employee theft includes office supplies, petty cash, products out of inventory, products that have been returned to the store, products from the shelves, kickbacks and payoffs from vendors, or money from the companies accounts.

Inside theft / shoplifting by employees ends up costing retail stores in a very serious way. Walmart loses approximately 3.5 billion a year to employee theft. Dollar General is another big looser.

Employers use a number of techniques to combat this type of theft. Video surveillance, merchandise databases, RFID tags, and security checkpoints at the exits are commonly used. Any suspected theft can lead to arrest, criminal charges, and worse. Even an accidental misplacing of store merchandise may cause an unwanted interrogation by loss-prevention.

Another common theft-by-employee situation involves helping your friend shoplift by intentionally not scanning merchandise or running a credit or debit card that you know is stolen. The store often catches this by examining video surveillance or using an undercover security guard. An arrest can result in felony charges if the value of the merchandise exceeds $1,000 or if a stolen debit or credit card was used.

If you've been arrested for petit larceny or grand larceny, contact us for a case evaluation.