News Feb 5, 2016 at 10:13 am

Police Reports Illustrated: A Man with a Badge Stops a Woman Leaving a Grocery Store and Accuses Her of Shoplifting

Callan Berry
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Comments

1
There may be some extenuating circumstances around why she didn't realize that wasn't a thing, but everyone should be aware that the cops aren't going to ask for your credit card. Unless you stole it.
urn on February 5, 2016 at 11:02 AM Report this
2
Come on, really? I mean, aside from just accepting that someone is a police officer without going back in the store etc etc, (I can kinda see this in the moment), how can anyone be an adult in these times and not get tipped off by an "officer" demanding phone, credit and debit cards WITH PINS??? The guy might as well have been wearing a hat that says SCAMMER on it.
genevieve on February 5, 2016 at 11:05 AM Report this
3
it's not just a scam, it's a pretty deplorable crime. and he wanted to go back to her home? not good.
in-frequent on February 5, 2016 at 11:16 AM Report this
4
No, not good at all. In the past few years there have been people in Pierce County impersonating cops with blue flashing lights behind the grill of their cars pulling people over, usually women. If someone in plain clothes claims to be a policeman ask for ID, not just a badge flashed at you. Also, and I no some sloggers don't like this, ask for a business card as well and keep it. If nothing else it could be evidence.
bertha on February 5, 2016 at 11:28 AM Report this
5
@2,

Because people are accustomed to obey authority figures. Or I should say "conditioned" to.
TheBadSeed131313 on February 5, 2016 at 11:33 AM Report this
6
how fucking dumb can you be
The CHZA on February 5, 2016 at 11:35 AM Report this
7
It's amazing how strongly people feel compelled to listen to authority figures. Or maybe she's just very dumb. But I bet lots of surprisingly smart people would fall for the same thing when under stress and faced with an authority figure.
ohthetrees on February 5, 2016 at 11:45 AM Report this
8
The bit I don't understand is, how could the woman think it was perfectly OK for the fake cop to ask for her credit cards, phone and associated pin numbers, but then she balked at him saying, "Now let's go back to your place"? That doesn't sound as hinky to me as asking for my PINs (not that it isn't all hinky. It's just "why one, and not the other").
originalcinner on February 5, 2016 at 12:07 PM Report this
9
Because real cops are very prone to violence when their authority is questioned, there are to many reports of people being beaten, arrested or even killed for trying to verify that the person is a real cop.

When the police stop treating their fellow citizens with contempt, it will be easier to to the criminals from the cops
Merchant Seaman on February 5, 2016 at 12:30 PM Report this
10
The thing I don't get is, if she didn't actually shoplift anything, why did she feel compelled to obey the orders of this "authority figure" in the first place? I get the whole "conditioning" issue @5 alludes to, but seriously, the victim here must have an abnormally credulous personality to have submitted to this without even momentarily questioning the perp's credentials.
COMTE on February 5, 2016 at 12:52 PM Report this
11
Everyone thinks their BS detector is better than it really is.
SPG on February 5, 2016 at 1:39 PM Report this
12
@11

Bingo.
seatackled on February 5, 2016 at 2:08 PM Report this
13
There is no QFC in the University District.
stinkbug on February 5, 2016 at 3:12 PM Report this
14
Ok, from reading the actual police report I learned the following:

- She likely had been shopping at Trader Joe's.
- The incident with the guy happened a block or so from the store, not right outside it.
- The victim said the suspect "acted angry" and "began loudly screaming at her" and that she compiled with his demands because "she was afraid of her physical safety".
- The suspect gave her back the bags of foods and told her the iPhone was in the bag(s).
- Suspect is 6'4" and 290 (and thus may have been intimidating)
- It sounds like the suspect went directly to Walgreen's on 50th and successfully bought gift cards and other items totaling $299.33. But a second attempted purchase of $927.56 of stuff was declined.
- Police have store video surveillance of the suspect.
stinkbug on February 5, 2016 at 3:39 PM Report this
15
Should have asked for a business card.
Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn on February 5, 2016 at 3:50 PM Report this
16
Please. People stop saying PIN number, HIV virus, hot water heater etc. etc. It's like the department of redundancy department.
Weekilter on February 5, 2016 at 5:41 PM Report this
17
@16, No.
Sandiai on February 5, 2016 at 6:10 PM Report this
18
@16

It's all because they didn't study enough for the SAT test. Maybe not their fault, though--perhaps they were distracted by all the news of the AIDS syndrome back in the day.
seatackled on February 5, 2016 at 6:24 PM Report this
19
I'm surprised that so many people are talking about her being either dumb or overly compliant to authority when the third option was so obvious to me. My first impression (later confirmed by the commenter who checked the police report) was that she gave up the groceries and cards/PINs because she was afraid of violence. It was only when he made it clear that he would escalate to violence anyway ("Now we're going to your house") that she took the risk of calling his bluff.

This is a reality of how women and men interact with each other: sometimes women go along with shit because sometimes men respond violently to being called out.

And if she was black, she had another reason to comply with obvious bullshit; even if he were a real cop, refusing to comply could have ended up with her being dead.

@8 The demands for groceries/phone/credit card meant she would lose material possessions. The demand to go to her house meant she would be assaulted. Of course she was more concerned about the latter.
rhymeswithlibrarian on February 6, 2016 at 6:11 AM Report this

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