They will join a chain gang.
Bronx grocers are cracking down on serial shoplifters by putting steel chains through the handles of laundry detergent bottles and fastening them with padlocks – a new low in the New York City theft epidemic.
Jose Dario Collado, proprietor of Yankee Food Deli in University Heights, lamented, “I put the detergent in jail” because thieves were cleaning up to the tune of at least $1,000 a month in detergent alone.
Prior to the epidemic, New York was the greatest city. Now, I have no idea what happened to the people,” Collado grumbled.
The tide has also turned four miles away at Pamela’s Green Deli in Crotona Park East.
Near the back of the store, yellow chains and Tuff Stuff padlocks are used to secure $21.99 bottles of Gain and $6.99 bottles of Era detergents.
Fernando Rodriguez, the 59-year-old deli owner, spent $15 for the new security precaution. “It makes people aware that you know they’re stealing, so they’re going to stop,” he said.
“We must confront those men, and we’re sometimes even afraid,” he added. Sometimes they come armed when we are unaware.
In response to an increase in thefts, the United Bodegas of America devised the lock-and-chain technique, according to the organization’s president, Fernando Mateo.
Mateo stated, “The justice system is not cooperating, and it’s getting to the point where you must either padlock every item that must be stolen or fight back.” And if you fight back, you risk jail time for defending your property.
Petit larceny, or theft of less than $1,000, has increased by 14% this year through January 15 compared to the same time period in 2022, according to NYPD data.
Residents surprised by the most recent security complication blamed the neighborhood’s drug crowds and the city’s revolving justice system.
“We live in a neighborhood with many drug addicts,” claimed 41-year-old Tylique Miles, adding that the thieves rapidly resell the expensive basics at a discount.
“The police can’t do anything to help,” grumbled 61-year-old Manuel San Miguel, referring to the state’s controversial 2019 bail reform law that prohibits courts from setting bond in cases involving non-violent felonies and misdemeanors such as stealing.
A group representing 4,000 independent grocers is requesting that “repeat theft offenders” be eligible for release, reversing a portion of the bail reform legislation and addressing the reality that petty thieves are rarely prosecuted.
Rodriguez exclaimed, “They know they can steal for less than $1,000 and that they will get away.” “The bail must be modified. They must punish [these] individuals.”
»As stealing reaches new lows, NYC bodegas lock laundry detergent«