Sainsbury’s Worker Sacked For Tackling Champagne Thief On The Same Day He Performed CPR On Store Security Guard

A 15-year-veteran of Sainsbury’s was sacked for tackling a champagne thief on the same day he performed CPR on the store’s only security guard.

Gary MacArthur, 42, was dismissed for gross misconduct after tackling the ‘aggressive’ shoplifter at a Sainsbury’s in West Wickham, southeast London.

The incident occurred on the same day he performed life-saving CPR on the store’s only security guard. Talk about an exciting shift!

Given the store had no security after the guard’s collapse, and no doubt feeling pumped after literally saving a man’s life, Gary took matters into his own hands after a shoplifter began throwing glass bottles at his colleagues.

Despite his heroics, Sainsbury’s sacked Gary for failing to observe their guidance on “prevent[ing] incidents”.

In his dismissal letter, bosses told him he should have merely acted as a “visual deterrent”.

Gary explains: “My security guard started at 1pm and he didn’t seem right in himself – he looked lighter in his colour.

“Around 2:30, he had a stroke on the shop floor. Me and another colleague were the first at his scene, did a bit of CPR and called the ambulance… he was rushed to hospital.”

“I finish up at 9pm, [and] as I go to take my headpiece off, I’ve got all the girls screaming in my ear going ‘come down, we’ve got an aggressive Champagne thief.’”

The shoplifter was a repeat offender who regularly targeted the store, and had a reputation locally for stealing expensive bottles of Moët, Bollinger and Veuve Clicquot.

Gary was able to successfully escort the thief out of the store, but the thief then re-entered and began smashing bottles, throwing two in the direction of Gary’s manager and another colleague.

As the thief became more aggressive, Gary and a customer bravely rushed him, restrained him, and held him on the floor until police arrived. Give the man a raise, right?

Welp, unfortunately Gary was blamed for ‘escalating’ the situation by initially removing the thief from the store, leading him to become more aggressive. And so in the end – he was given his marching orders.

On Gary’s case, a Sainsbury’s spokesperson said: “We are seeing incidents of violence, aggression and theft happening in our stores on a daily basis, threatening the safety of colleagues and customers.

“We are responding by investing in extra security measures, ensuring addressing this issue remains a Government priority and sharing intelligence with police forces around the country, not asking our colleagues to put their safety on the line by tackling offenders.

“That’s why our guidance to colleagues on responding to retail crime prioritises keeping everyone in our stores safe and is specifically designed to prevent incidents from escalating.”

I suppose I get it on some level. Sainsbury’s don’t want to be held liable for any injury, or worse, sustained by either employees, customers or indeed shoplifters themselves. They sleep better knowing a few bottles of champers have been swiped rather than risk a potential lawsuit by their staff getting physical.

Sacking the guy though? Especially given the context of the security guard stroking out earlier in the same day? Seems just a tad harsh. Someone hook up Gary with a job, ASAP!

Waitrose is on the same B.S. – they recently sacked one of their workers for stopping a shoplifter who was stealing Easter Eggs.