Apple products continue to be a hot item on the international black market. While people around the world celebrated New Year’s Eve on Monday night, thieves broke into an Apple retail store in Paris and stole an estimated $1.3 million dollars worth of products such as Ipads, Iphones and Macs. The Wall Street Journal reports that they broke in through an employee entrance and injured a custodial service worker and security guard. The irony is that extra police were concentrated in the area of the heist due to New Year’s celebrations, but they were focused on the crowded Champs-Elysees. The thieves actually had a good 40 minutes to empty the stores inventory into a Mercedes van parked nearby. This Apple heist comes on the heels of a November incident at JFK airport in New York, where perpetrators stole more than $1.5 million of Ipad minis from a cargo building. And, last summer a group of robbers targeted trucks outside of Paris that were carrying the popular products. No one was hurt, but the thieves were never caught. Police agree that the Apple items are hot because they retain their resale value on the international market.
According to Crime Doctor, shoplifting occurs 330- 400 million times per year in U.S. at a loss of $10 - $13 billon dollars. When employee and vendor theft is factored in, the sum can skyrocket to about $33 billion dollars stolen per year! This translates to a serious problem for society in general because the retailers have to take this theft into consideration when pricing items. The lack of moral responsibility of shoplifters effects society as retailers incorporate the potential for shrinkage into the price of the item we are purchasing.
The large population of shoplifters all across the U.S. and around the world can greatly benefit from taking theft diversion classes in 2013! Due to the popularity of web-based learning, theft classes are now readily available online for the individual to take at his or her convenience. Theft classes online are designed for people who need to take a class due to legal reasons or for personal growth. They are educational classes that teach individuals how to understand the impulse control disorder which causes the underlying tendency to steal. Students are taught empathy training, emotional intelligence, communication skills and how to manage stress more effectively. Behavioral interventions are taught to help the individual overcome the behavior, and, all the risks and consequences of getting caught stealing are discussed to further outline the repercussions of this behavior.
Online theft classes can be taken to fulfill court mandates so that the offender does not need to take more time off from work or school to make a specific classroom schedule. We have found that many jurisdictions across the U.S. are accepting online classes, but be sure to check with your judge first to make sure he will accept a distance learning class. If so, then be sure to pick one that is designed by a licensed and practicing psychotherapist with training in the field. This will ensure you are getting a current, quality education. Then simply enroll online and the class is immediately available for you to take at any time of the day or night that fits into your busy schedule.
