Accusing someone of fraudulent sales

JohnCleary

This is purely a hypothetical situation, no friends involved at all!

Let's just say I was approached with a situation while drinking in the pub last night, thought i'd ask for some opinions on the matter. Friend of mine works in a retail store that has many different shops within the store, so she can sell stock from all over the shop at her particular till.

Her friend (also staff), decided she would be smart and buy some stuff, but swap the tags of cheaper stock and put it on the stuff she was buying. My friend didn't even cop this, just scanned the stuff, gave the staff discount and that was that.

On their way out (they're mates so left the shop together) the Security approached and brought them to the office. Basicly quizzed about them about the whole thing, etc.

They accused my friend of Fraudulent Sales. My question is, can she get in trouble for this? She didn't do anything wrong IMO, she just scanned the items and gave the staff discount. She did no other manual editing of the price. Personally I think the security are trying to bluff her, what do you guys reckon? The security staff said to her "You know well that the price of X couldn't have been that cheap" ... I think that was very ignorant, how is someone supposed to know the price of all the stock of a whole retail store, stock that she has absolutily no interaction with (Shelf stocking, tagging etc)

Few more questions:
1) Eventhough she was not carrying the stock when leaving the shop, they insisted she come to the security office, could this be considered false imprisonment? Or could they argue that they didn't force her to come to the office

2) I know what my friends friend (wow this is confusing) was wrong and stupid, but could she use the argument that it was a tagging error, and make them prove otherwise? Innocent until proven guilty IMHO

I don't know my friends friend at all, she could be a scumbag for all I know, i'm asking question 2 out of sheer curiousity

Thanks guys

Time Magazine

Accidents don't mean theft. Your friend, unaware of any wrongdoing, is not really in any danger. There would be some possibility of negligence which might implicate her, if she sold a Waterford Crystal trophy for 50c she could probably be in trouble, but given the size of the store I'd imagine she's alright on that front as it could pass as human error.

I'd say, given the circumstances, that security acted reasonably in insisting that they stay. Perhaps had they restrained her as opposed to insisting she stayed there'd be a case, but I dunno.

Your friend's friend is screwed, I imagine. And rightly so, the hypothetical thieving cow.

Security accusing your friend of stealing in the presence of other people is almost certainly defamation.

cast_iron

JohnCleary wrote:

Her friend (also staff), decided she would be smart and buy some stuff, but swap the tags of cheaper stock and put it on the stuff she was buying.

Smart?? Stupid if you ask me. Also, your friend's friend is a thief, nothing less and knowingly involved her in fraud/theft. Are they still friends? I should hope not.

JohnCleary wrote:

They accused my friend of Fraudulent Sales. My question is, can she get in trouble for this? She didn't do anything wrong IMO, she just scanned the items and gave the staff discount.

I think she's already in trouble. She took part in fraud (knowingly or not). Without knowing what she sold for how much, it's difficult to say how your friend will fare out.

JohnCleary wrote:

The security staff said to her "You know well that the price of X couldn't have been that cheap" ... I think that was very ignorant, how is someone supposed to know the price of all the stock of a whole retail store, stock that she has absolutily no interaction with (Shelf stocking, tagging etc)

Yes, it was ignorant, but not on behalf of the security staff.

JohnCleary wrote:

Few more questions:
1) Eventhough she was not carrying the stock when leaving the shop, they insisted she come to the security office, could this be considered false imprisonment? Or could they argue that they didn't force her to come to the office

She was suspected of fraudulent sales, not theft. So they were investigating the fraudulent part of the incident, not who took them where, when - so I would say they were well within their right to bring her to the office.

JohnCleary wrote:

2) I know what my friends friend (wow this is confusing) was wrong and stupid, but could she use the argument that it was a tagging error, and make them prove otherwise? Innocent until proven guilty IMHO

From the sounds of things, she could probably argue anything. But I would wonder what drew the attention of the security staff to the incident in the 1st place. I doubt it was a random check, so perhaps there is evidence there...

JohnCleary

Turns out it was a random check on all staff, just my friends friend didn't have a receipt (well, she did, but for something else) so thats when questions started being asked

In the meantime, my friend has been suspended with full pay (Sweet IMHO)

Our man in Havana

JohnCleary wrote:

In the meantime, my friend has been suspended with full pay (Sweet IMHO)

That would mean they are going to sack her.

JohnCleary

Bond-007 wrote:

That would mean they are going to sack her.

Yup. Only a part time job that she was quitting in 8 weeks anyhow, she's kinda chuffed cause she wasn't going to be using the job as a reference anyhow, she needs to study, and she doesn't have to work new years day!