With a pompous attitude and a desire to travel, a 46-year-old man and his 70-year-old mother were arrested last week for allegedly stealing over $2 million dollars worth of toys from 30 Toys R Us stores in Florida. Michael and Margaret Pollara are being indicted for more than a dozen counts of grand theft and dealing in stolen property, just for laws broken since June 1, 2012, but according to further investigation, these crimes have been taking place for over 10 years. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the South Florida Organized Fraud Task Force, overseen by the U.S, Secret Service, have joined together in the investigation and have uncovered similar crimes targeting other merchants as well.
According to investigators, the mother and son duo were committing a scheme called “box stuffing”. This may be a new term to many, but seems to have worked well for many years. Box stuffing is when a less expensive item is removed from a box and replaced with a larger ticket item inside. So, the two of them would take a cheap item in a big box, empty it and hide the contents somewhere else in the store. They would then fill the box with smaller, more expensive items, seal it with tape and then purchase the item at the price on the box.
They were finally caught after employees noticed boxes of Harry Potter legos were missing from inventory, although none were sold that day. Employees reviewed video surveillance and began to put the puzzle together which led to further indictments.
Unfortunately, according to National Retail Security surveys, more than $30 billion worth of merchandise is shoplifted nationally and more than $100 million worth is stolen in Florida annually. These facts impact society, as we all have to pick up the tab for the financial loss that businesses incur. Meaning we have to pay more for general items because companies have to add in a cost for potential theft of the item.
The duo is currently in jail facing a very unhappy future. The son was very smug about his behavior and considered the “box stuffing” an art. He spent most of his earnings on travel and appeared proud of his lifestyle. On the surface, this criminal appears to lack any empathy or retribution for his activity. Taking Theft classes online would have helped the two of them learn how to overcome their desire to steal, develop empathy for others, and realize the implications of their criminal behavior. Classes are simple to take from any web-based computer and can be accessed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. A practicing and licensed therapist can be contacted during the workweek with any questions or issues that the individual might have. While it’s too late for these two, it may not be too late for the individual involved in this impulsive behavior that hasn’t been caught yet. Take online theft classes privately, from the convenience of your own home to help curtail and stop this behavior.
