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Working at the world's craziest job for 5 years I have seen some things, but this robbery is the most talked-about event a year after it happened.
Background: I work at Toys R Us so I have seen it all and become so desensitized, I don't think anything could surprise me anymore (down to pet iguanas on leashes or booger-pickers playing with the candy).
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In the evening one night, these 3 guys came in to the store (it was really slow) so naturally I was curious. I mean, what are three 20-something wannabe-gangsters doing in a toy store at 8pm on a Tuesday night?
They entered the store unnaturally slow, taking in the ceiling lights and fans (so I thought they were high, nothing new). Kind of weird, but I've had worse.
They meander into the electronics section and hang out for half an hour, not buying anything. I called over a couple extra staff to watch them in case they try to grab and run.
They leave with no incident and everything goes back to normal. Right?
Wrong.
The next morning I get a call at 5am because my District Manager got a call from the security company saying the front windows had been broken. She was on her way there and so was I as I was the closest and one of the longest-employed staff members.
She gets there a few minutes before me and has this red glow about her. Bad.
Apparently when she got there and started cleaning up the glass while waiting for the cops to arrive (which is why I was called, they ended up 25 minutes to show up), a man in a black jacket came up into the front foyer of the store and demanded to know if we had any Nintendo Wiis in stock.
WTF? At 5 in the morning?! TOTALLY sketch.
DM: It's 5 in the morning. I don't know, come back in 5 hours. We're dealing with a situation right now.
GUY: I want to see them NOW.
DM: Look buddy. I haven't had coffee yet. I have sharp shards of glass in my hands. If you want to wait a couple of minutes you can ask the police to see our store, they would LOVE to know why you're here at 5am harassing me at the scene of a break-in.
Guy: *steps forward* NOW.
DM: GET THE F*** OFF MY PROPERTY OR I'LL SUE YOU FOR HARASSMENT AND TRESPASSING!!
The guy quickly retreats into the night.
When I show up I hang out with her helping her move the chunks of glass away so we can get to the door (big store windows).
When the police show up she gives me her debit and PIN and a short order.
DM: 3 large coffees and a pack of cigarettes.
I run off because I know how she is without her "breakfast" and it is NOT pretty. If that guy had stepped over his boundaries anymore he probably would have been part of the scene of the crime, body and all.
ANYWHO... When all is said and done, 3 guys (guess who?) broke in around 4:55 with a sledgehammer to break through our windows and metal safety screen.
They stole over $5,000 of video games and hardware and made a hasty escape out the back door.
Sucky for us, yes, because our electronics section was just about wiped clean.
Sucky for the 3 idiots, because the reason the guy came back after 5am?
....drumroll please.......
He left his cellphone in the store.
Never heard what happened, never got our stock back, but there was something in the paper about several suspects being caught red-handed in a "second high-end robbery of the week" 3 days later.
Thank God for no coffee.
Background: I work at Toys R Us so I have seen it all and become so desensitized, I don't think anything could surprise me anymore (down to pet iguanas on leashes or booger-pickers playing with the candy).
------------------------------------------------
In the evening one night, these 3 guys came in to the store (it was really slow) so naturally I was curious. I mean, what are three 20-something wannabe-gangsters doing in a toy store at 8pm on a Tuesday night?
They entered the store unnaturally slow, taking in the ceiling lights and fans (so I thought they were high, nothing new). Kind of weird, but I've had worse.
They meander into the electronics section and hang out for half an hour, not buying anything. I called over a couple extra staff to watch them in case they try to grab and run.
They leave with no incident and everything goes back to normal. Right?
Wrong.
The next morning I get a call at 5am because my District Manager got a call from the security company saying the front windows had been broken. She was on her way there and so was I as I was the closest and one of the longest-employed staff members.
She gets there a few minutes before me and has this red glow about her. Bad.
Apparently when she got there and started cleaning up the glass while waiting for the cops to arrive (which is why I was called, they ended up 25 minutes to show up), a man in a black jacket came up into the front foyer of the store and demanded to know if we had any Nintendo Wiis in stock.
WTF? At 5 in the morning?! TOTALLY sketch.
DM: It's 5 in the morning. I don't know, come back in 5 hours. We're dealing with a situation right now.
GUY: I want to see them NOW.
DM: Look buddy. I haven't had coffee yet. I have sharp shards of glass in my hands. If you want to wait a couple of minutes you can ask the police to see our store, they would LOVE to know why you're here at 5am harassing me at the scene of a break-in.
Guy: *steps forward* NOW.
DM: GET THE F*** OFF MY PROPERTY OR I'LL SUE YOU FOR HARASSMENT AND TRESPASSING!!
The guy quickly retreats into the night.
When I show up I hang out with her helping her move the chunks of glass away so we can get to the door (big store windows).
When the police show up she gives me her debit and PIN and a short order.
DM: 3 large coffees and a pack of cigarettes.
I run off because I know how she is without her "breakfast" and it is NOT pretty. If that guy had stepped over his boundaries anymore he probably would have been part of the scene of the crime, body and all.
ANYWHO... When all is said and done, 3 guys (guess who?) broke in around 4:55 with a sledgehammer to break through our windows and metal safety screen.
They stole over $5,000 of video games and hardware and made a hasty escape out the back door.
Sucky for us, yes, because our electronics section was just about wiped clean.
Sucky for the 3 idiots, because the reason the guy came back after 5am?
....drumroll please.......
He left his cellphone in the store.
Never heard what happened, never got our stock back, but there was something in the paper about several suspects being caught red-handed in a "second high-end robbery of the week" 3 days later.
Thank God for no coffee.
Maybe they assume that your insurance will pay and the insurance company will get the stock afterwards. That's how it work here.
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