'Horrified' woman grabbed by police while trying to return M&S gifts
A woman says she was grabbed by police and accused of shoplifting whilst trying to help a sick pensioner return some items to M&S on the weekend.
Roxana Shirazi, from Bristol, was left humiliated as she attempted to take her friend Roy's unwanted Christmas gifts back when she was confronted by several officers in the middle of the street. She explained that the 93-year-old had taken ill so she wanted to relieve some stress by returning the items for him.
But when she walked into to the store in Cribbs Causeway, the journalist said staff told her the items had no purchase history at the shop. Speaking about the confusion that unfolded, she said: "He just wanted to exchange the gifts - which had tags on - but did not have a receipt, as he was embarrassed and didn't want his family to know. So I walked in with a bag filled with his things, went to the cashier and explained the situation.
"She scanned them and told me the items had never been purchased as there had 'never been a purchase history'. It was very odd, they had definitely paid for the items so I said they had certainly been purchased, but that was all she would say."
Roxana decided to walk away to give the items back to Roy, but before she could leave the store, she said she was "grabbed" by a security guard - who accused her of stealing them reports Bristol Live.. Roxana said: "I told him to look at the CCTV which showed me walking into the store with the bag of items. He said to me I had stolen them before and brought them back into the store to get money for them. I was shocked and said 'they aren't mine, they are a 93-year-old man's'. I tried to explain the situation but he said it was theft and was going to call the police."
Tragedy as 13-month-old boy dies after the stolen car he was in crashed
As Roxana attempted to exit the shop, she remembered being "grabbed" by two policemen in a crowded street, She added: "It was so embarrassing. I even got them to talk to Roy on the phone and he said 'honestly, they were given to me by my kids' - but they didn't believe him. He was shaking, and so upset because of his age - he was literally coughing up blood that morning and needed to go to the doctor's and was worried and wanted to come to help as the police wanted to detain me.
Police rushed to the store on Saturday morning (No credit)"I was stood there for ages with people watching - it was so horrible and mortifying. The police took the stuff off me and wouldn't give it back - they took my address and name. They were calling me a thief said they were going to come and investigate me - it was so upsetting. I tweeted M&S about the incident later on that day and they said they would look into it - no apology at all."
The next day, Roxana received a call from M&S admitting they had "made a mistake" and there had not been any shoplifting. She said: "I felt like a criminal - it was really horrible and I don't know why they made that decision. There is no evidence and it was so extreme. Apparently they found out that sometimes purchase history doesn't come up on some items - but the staff at M&S should know that and not make such serious allegations."
A M&S spokesperson commented: "We are investigating and have contacted Roxana directly to apologise for her experience." The police said: "We were called to Cribbs Causeway, in Bristol, on Saturday 6 January following an allegation of theft from a shop. Officers attended and approached a woman in her 50s outside the mall, where they explained the reason they had stopped her and discussed with her the allegation which had been made.
"Officers asked the woman to give them the items while enquiries were carried out. They spoke with representatives from the shop, who could not confirm any offence of theft. Officers subsequently made contact with the woman to return the items to her. No further action will be taken as no crime has been identified." The Mirror has contacted M&S for comment.
Meanwhile. Roxana says she has still not been able to pick up Roy’s items, and has received "nothing" in the form of an apology from the store or the police. She said: "You can’t treat people like this. It’s a horrible thing to happen, and I don’t know how M&S and the security make their decisions.
‘"Apparently they found out that sometimes purchase history doesn’t come up on some items – but the staff at M&S should know that and not make such serious allegations. Roy hasn’t been well – he felt embarrassed to say to his kids he wanted to exchange some items. Sometimes you don’t want to do that to people who have given you a gift. He’s very fragile and very shaken and it has really affected him – he was scared it would be his fault – and it has become such a big thing, it’s horrible."
* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can report any errors to [email protected]
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
