The story some of you have been waiting for.

[DisWiz]

Seems like I've read this same "story" before.

Urban Legends sound plausible until you really start to examine them.

I'd wait before I get sucked into what can easily be a TROLL thread.

Umbrella strollers offer little hidden space.

Security met the DH on the way back INTO the store?

Nobody (police included) listened to the plausible reason for the mix-up?

Authorities would rather just "haul in" in a suspect who does not fit the profile of a shoplifter in any way?

Guests had purchased a major amount of merchandise, but were arrested for stealing basically trinkets without any consideration of that?

And the OP keeps jumping between telling it about "others" and then slipping into first-person about themselves.

Sorry.

I'll give it a 15% chance of being a real story and 85% chance of being hogwash.

 

[mickeyfan2]

As I read some of your posts,I was amazed as the opinions of some of you.
I also think that the ones who have nothing but judgemental things to write and can do it so freely are sad. Some of the posts were so hurtful and rude....
but this is water over the bridge...all I asked was a question. I know what I am going to do about my trip, which I will defintely keep to myself.(Better safe than sorry.) Some of you were so understanding and gave me great advice ,thank you for that.


So this is the story some of you can't wait to read..... My main purpose for sending this is to have all of the future guests proceed with caution. I would hate to read that this happened to someone else.

She had been enjoying the last 9 days with her family at WDW. Having a very enjoyable time. Up until an affternoon she wishes she could erase. Shopping in one of the stores on Main Street with her family, looking for some last minute souviners, she came across a few gifts for friends back at home. A mug, 2 pins and a keychain. As she was shopping she had her 4 year old DS with her, trying to keep an eye on him and browse at the same time. At the same time her husband and 13 yr old daughter were in the same shop looking.
The DS hears and notices the family pardade so her darts out of the store and heads fo the street. Mom not knowing what to do puts the mug with the key chain and pins in the back of the unbrella stroller, with absoulte full intentions of returning inside and paying. As they were out side the DH and DD were finishing up their shopping. The DH not knowing that she had placed the mug in the back of the stroller goes through to cash out,pays for his purchases and leaves. Finally find his wife and mentions that he spent enough to go back and purchase the blanket for 15$ if you spend 50.00. She said go ahead it will come in handy as a x-mas gift. Still not thinking about the mug and pins ,the DH returns to the same store, with them in the back of the stroller. Well guess who he was met by at the store, security.Minutes later the police. He was accused of intentionally shop lifting. He offered to pay for the items and tried explaining what happened.NOT A CHANCE!! So his DD watched as her DAD was taken away to Orlando holding. After finally finding the Mom she was escorted out by the police. She had to bail her husband out of jail for 500$. With a return court date in Dec. We live in N.Y. She triedso hard to explain and offered endless times to pay for the stuff. They were told that WDW has 0 tolerance to shoplifting, if you are caught stealing a pencil, they will fully prosacute.

Some of you might believe that there is two sides to a story. But you will have to take my word for it. My dear friend lives for WDW she has since she was a small girl. There is nothing she would do to the place to ever rip it off or do harm by it. Nor would she ever put her children through something like this. Her poor 4 yr old thinks it was his fault.,because he wanted to see the parade.

So please be careful with your children in the stores at WDW. Mine have been guilty of holding things in their hands at walmart for example, with not paying any attention they just about take it. We have turned around a few times.

I am not sure of the responses that this will get. I am hoping it won't head in the same direction as the others.

This was just a heads up to be careful when you are in the stores with your children.

She did not just put the stuff down rather than put it in her stroller? She didnot leave the stoller to get the DS? So she did not just grab the son and then head right back into the store? The DH and DD continued to shop, checked out and then met the mom outside? How much time elapsed? Sounds like 10+ minutes to me. Why would they arrest the DH and not the mom? The mom was the one who shoplifted. Something does not add up here.

Eric is that you?

 

[cleo]

I've read this story before, too. Right down to the DD watching Daddy get dragged away. Maybe it's really common.

One way or another, it isn't about TPA&S so it's off to the C-Board.

 

[Mecha Figment]

So awful! I'm sorry for your friend and her family and I can't imagine how I would feel if this happened to me at Disney, a place that I love so much. I hope everything gets sorted out and that your friend and her family are able to put it behind them and still enjoy the parks one day.

I agree this sounds like internet junk mail fodder to me.

 

[Best_Vacation_EVER!]

While in University I worked in a retail store and was amazed by some of the things I would see. Some blatant (A woman caught on video stuffing things into her little kids (between about 5 to 8 years old) pockets and backpacks and when caught, claimed "honest mistake" the kids took them and didn't know better --- until they replayed her the tape showing HER doing the stuffing.) Some imaginative (woman claims that one of the store employees left a cup of coffee on the counter that spilled onto her and that the store should replace her damaged clothes on the spot --- once again the security tape showed her bringing the coffee into the store then spilling it on herself.)

Generally forgetful people tend not to conceal the items --- so if we saw someone who put things into bags, stroller pouches, etc... we would assume they were probably shoplifting and the police would be called by store security. If the items were in plain view and it looked like the customer was distracted then security would just talk to them and get the person to pay for the items.

While I'm sure for the family in this case it was purely accidental, Disney security must have felt they were trying to conceal the items. Hopefully everything will get straightened out for them.

 

[mickeyfan2]

Could this thread be a way of "getting back at" WDW for the terrible vacation that they had earlier this month?

 

[princesspiglet]

I swear I have read this story somewhere else also. Hmm, I am going to have to do some scoping on snopes. Sounds fishy to me and not to be conceited, but I work in HR and am a pretty good judge of character/people. This just smacks of bs to me.

 

[mickeyboat]

I have seen this story on the DIS before, too.

Denae

 

[Allison]

So, if the story is true, the mother made a decision to put unpaid items in the stroller and exit with them rather than quickly put them on a shelf or just leave the stroller all together to fetch her son?

I know I would never think the best thing to do was to leave a store with unpaid items. I would drop them where I was standing if need be.

What a poor decision on the mother's part.

 

[Duckfan-in-Chicago]

OK...can the OP clarify something? Was the mug of the refillable variety? I could understand Disney being really upset if someone swiped that since you get the free lifetime refills and all.

 

[cheerful chickadee]

I'm confused about the first part of the post and the thread title, was this story previously mentioned in another thread or something? who was waiting for this story?

*scratches head*

 

[drgnfly30]

I believe the first portion of the OP refers to this thread

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1280112

 

[Duckfan-in-Chicago]

I'm confused about the first part of the post and the thread title, was this story previously mentioned in another thread or something? who was waiting for this story?

*scratches head*

Which first part? This is more like a telenovela than a single thread. I can't wait for the grand finale.

 

[Bob Slydell]

Ummm, thanks, but who are you???

 

[CharmCityGirl]

Interesting, I recall reading a very similar story on this same board a few months ago. A guy meant to pay for the souvenirs, he had them in some kind of bag. Security immediatly arrested him and wouldn't even hear his side of the story. Coincidentally, he was from NY too.......

 

[Beth76]

Oh this is great! I totally wasn't buying the "she put her things down in the stroller" instead of on a shelf. And that she also took the time to push her stroller when her child darted out of the store. The 4yo darting out of the store was another red flag. But now that this may be an urban legend--priceless! I did a little search on snopes and didn't come up with anything though. Maybe someone else can find it.

 

[mickeyfan2]

Interesting, I recall reading a very similar story on this same board a few months ago. A guy meant to pay for the souvenirs, he had them in some kind of bag. Security immediatly arrested him and wouldn't even hear his side of the story. Coincidentally, he was from NY too.......

That was Eric (ECurto) and the magic shopping bag story.

 

[Beth76]

Interesting, I recall reading a very similar story on this same board a few months ago. A guy meant to pay for the souvenirs, he had them in some kind of bag. Security immediatly arrested him and wouldn't even hear his side of the story. Coincidentally, he was from NY too.......

That was a different story. They were "told" they could use a special bag to shop in several different stores and then pay for all the purchases at the last stop. One of them was a cop too and didn't think anything of it.

 

[Maleficent13]

Maybe I'm wrong, but the way I read it was the mom dumped the stuff on top of the stroller so she could chase the kid outside...she left the stroller with the dad who was in the store, but didn't tell him about said stuff being in it...he paid for all the stuff he knew about, and then left the store with the stroller, thus *he* is the one who actually "shoplifted".

Having said that, I'm not going to touch the validity/nonvalidity of the story.

 

[U2_rocks!]

The mother did because she was chasing her DS when he darted out to the street to see the parade. She had intended on going back inside,before she did the DH was already done. He did not know the stuff was in the back of the stroller. She said everything happened so fast,never realizing to tell her DH that the stuff was there.

So did she just drop the stuff into the stroller and run after her DS, leaving the stroller in the store, then when DH finished up HE pushed the stroller outside not knowing what was in it? This is the only scenario that would make any sense to me. If she took the time to push the stroller outside after her DS, that makes no sense - if his safety is the only thing on her mind she would not have taken the time to negotiate a stroller through the crowd!

BTW: I can understand dropping stuff into a stroller to chase your toddler if you're not near a shelf (or the shelf you're near has fragile stuff and you just don't want to go near it in your panic). However, I cannot imagine then pushing said stroller out after the toddler!!!