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WALMART has revealed the truth behind a viral video of a shopper claiming she was banned from the supermarket for shoplifting.
TikToker Nesha said she was banished from Walmart for two years after an artificial intelligence camera caught her stealing.
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She made the shocking admission in a video on her TikTok (@ohthatsnesh) that went viral for capturing the amused reaction of the Walmart worker who stopped her.
In the video, Nesha could be seen skip-scanning a cart full of items, meaning she would pass an item across the reader without actually scanning the barcode.
Suddenly, her self-checkout had a message that indicated a Walmart team member was on their way to assist with the order.
Once the worker was at the kiosk, she scanned her ID, which caused an aerial video to play showing Nesha failing to scan her items.
The Walmart worker was recorded covering her face and laughing, but she still didn’t hold back any punishment.
Nesha said the employee called her manager, who called the police and escorted the TikToker out of the store.
However, Walmart saw the video and said there was no record of the incident actually happening, including the ban and the police response, as the New York Post reported.
The shopper joked in the video that she usually didn’t get caught stealing, but more thieves are being stopped by new tech.
Walmart is cracking down on shoplifting in a bid to make a dent in the estimated $86 billion worth of items stolen from stores every year.
Some efforts are obvious, like checking your receipt at the exit doors.
But others, including AI-powered cameras, are more in the background and designed to let shoppers know they’re always being watched.
Receipt checks in particular have been slammed by shoppers who feel customers shouldn’t be forced to use self-checkout – only to be tested over their work.
Legality of receipt checks and detention
In an effort to curtail retail crime, stores are increasingly turning to receipt checks as shoppers exit.
Legally, stores can ask to see a customer’s receipts, and membership-only stores have the right to demand such checks if shoppers agreed to terms and conditions that authorize it.
Many legal professionals have weighed in and come to similar conclusions, caveating that all states do have specific laws.
Generally speaking, stores have Shopkeeper’s Privilege laws that allow them to detain a person until authorities arrive when they have reasonable suspicion that a crime, like theft, has been committed.
Declining to provide a receipt is not a reason in itself for a store to detain a customer, they must have further reason to suspect a shopper of criminal activity.
Due to the recent nature of the receipt checks, there is little concrete law on the legality of the practice, as it takes time for law to catch up with technology.
Setliff Law, P.C. claims that “there is no definitive case law specifically relating to refusal to produce a receipt for purchases.”
For stores that improperly use their Shopkeeper’s Privilege, they could face claims of false imprisonment.
“The primary law that applies to these types of wrongful detention cases is called ‘False Imprisonment’,” explained Hudson Valley local attorney Alex Mainetti.
“Of course, you’re not literally imprisoned, but you’re detained by a person who has no lawful authority to detain you and/or wrongfully detains a customer.”
It is likely that as altercations in stores over receipt checks continue, more court cases will occur giving clearer definitions and boundaries to the legality of receipt checks.
A lawyer who spoke to The U.S. Sun said customers should know their rights before they surrender their receipt at checkout.
Daniel Tsai, who founded ConsumerRights, said that both shoppers and Walmart should be wary before enforcing anti-theft rules.
“Depending on the state and jurisdiction, when a store stops a customer that it suspects of shoplifting, it is effectively engaging in a citizen’s arrest whereby they are using the powers of a police officer to detain the suspect,” he said.
The specifics of a citizens arrest varies depending on the state our county, so there could be ramifications if someone conducts one illegally.
“Stores need to be extremely cautious and mindful of their customers’ civil rights and must have evidence such as video camera footage or eyewitnesses such as security guards and staff, to show they can evidentially prove a crime of theft was in fact committed by the customer,” said Tsai.
The anti-theft changes come after Walmart introduced new technology that attacks stealing at self-checkout.
Now at some stores, shoppers can scan any part of an item and it will still register.
Plus, one customer walked right out of a store after finding several items locked behind plexiglass.
Latest self-checkout changes
Retailers are evolving their self-checkout strategy in an effort to speed up checkout times and reduce theft.
Walmart shoppers were shocked when self-checkout lanes at various locations were made available only for Walmart+ members.
Other customers reported that self-checkout was closed during specific hours, and more cashiers were offered instead.
While shoppers feared that shoplifting fueled the updates, a Walmart spokesperson revealed that store managers are simply experimenting with ways to improve checkout performance.
One bizarre experiment included an RFID-powered self-checkout kiosk that would stop the fiercely contested receipt checks.
However, that test run has been phased out.
At Target, items are being limited at self-checkout.
Last fall, the brand surveyed new express self-checkout lanes across 200 stores with 10 items or less for more convenience.
As of March 2024, this policy has been expanded across 2,000 stores in the US.
Shoppers have also spotted their local Walmart stores restricting customers to 15 items or less to use self-checkout machines.
