Teen stole nearly $1M from Kroger grocery store over 2 weeks

[left-of-center2012]

A 19-year-old Atlanta-area teen was arrested Thursday by Gwinnett County police and has been accused of stealing nearly $1 million from a Kroger grocery store.

Police said Tre Brown spent two weeks creating over 40 fake returns to obtain over $980,000 while he was employed at the Steve Reynold Blvd. Kroger between December and January, according to a statement.

The returns ranged from $75 to over $87,000 for non-existent items and were placed on several credit cards, detectives said. Corporate employees noticed the transactions and contacted police.

Further investigation showed Brown appears to have used the money to buy clothes, guns, shoes and two cars, police said. Prior to his arrest, police said Brown totaled one of the cars. A large sum of money was returned after Brown's arrest, but the amount is unknown, according to police. Brown has been charged with theft.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/atlanta-area-teen-stole-nearly-1m-kroger-grocery-store-over-n1255199

[NoMoreRepugs]

1. An $87,000 return to a grocery store???

Do they sell Mercedes?

[Renew Deal]

7. No one would have noticed at Whole Foods

[callous taoboy]

11. You mean Whole Paycheck.

I was a customer or theirs in the mid-70's when it was located in an old Victorian house in Austin, and it was called "Safer Way."

[greenjar_01]

2. This is what folks in the grocery biz call shrinkage

Last edited Fri Jan 22, 2021, 12:53 PM - Edit history (1)

My dude is bold AF. When I worked in the supermarket, the most we did was steal beers and cool them up in the produce freezer to drink on the job!

One dude used to cook hot dogs on the hot plate for melting plastic wrap on to the pre-cut produce containers. Sorry vegetarians!

[Cbus Girl]

5. You would have been lucky to find a

working can of Reddi Whip at the grocery store I worked at in high school. 😂

[greenjar_01]

12. Heyoooo!

Love it!

[ProfessorGAC]

3. An $87,000 Return?

And their computer system wasn't programmed to flag a return over 80 grand to a grocery store?
Seems IT and risk management have some explaining to do.
I get corporate people flagged it, but I'd think think the system should have alerted store management in real time.
I'm betting it will in the future

[mopinko]

4. sometimes IT ppl cant see the forest for the trees.

nerd-vision is real.

[Renew Deal]

8. Don't blame the IT people.

It’s up to the company to prioritize security.

[mopinko]

17. meh. it's up to the it ppl to see where limits should be put.

i dont know how that system could even be set to allow that many digits. that's an it decision- how many slots do we put here.
after y2k, that's a question that should be well understood.

[ProfessorGAC]

9. What Excuses The People In...

...Risk Management, Finance, & Internal Audit?
Everybody in those departments can't be nerd blind.
And all three are directly responsible for that trivial part of business called MONEY!

[genxlib]

15. In fairness, the kid got caught in a week

So something flagged somewhere.

It's not as if he got away with it for months or years.

[DFW]

20. To do that, you have to work for the NRA, not Kroger's. n/t

[cbdo2007]

22. Most IT people are just following business requirements.

It really isn't their job to determine what the business requirements are, that is up to the business analysts.

Also, sounds like the flagging system worked as it should as this transaction was flagged in the back end of the system as an extreme outlier. They should have had an alert on the floor to require manager level approval on any returns over $1,000.

[mopinko]

6. well, that kid is goin places.

prison, but yeah.
talk about stones.

[cwydro]

10. No. He's a thief.

A common thief.

[mopinko]

16. well, he's a thief, but i wouldnt say common.

he's a kid. he's gettin a wake up call.
where he is going may be up in flames, but i cant helping making note of a set of stones like that. not a gender thing.

[Ilsa]

21. It's a shame, because he seems moderately intelligent.

Not genius intelligent, but has enough understanding of financial systems to pull off a big heist. Too bad he's thrown away his life.

[mopinko]

24. that's not how it should work. he's a kid.

unless he has other history, this shouldnt ruin his life. it's a lot of money, but he didnt go anywhere.
he didnt make it hard to find him. that part is where the stupid kid comes in.

[Ilsa]

34. I agree-- it shouldn't ruin his life.

Unfortunately, with our current system of justice, he'll be treated as an adult because he is legally an adult, even though his brain will not be fully mature for another 5-6 years. At age 19, the stain of this mistake will remain on his record.

[mopinko]

35. well, hopefully he gets a good lawyer and a good judge.

unless he's been a little shit all his life, in which case he can go to jail.

[Drunken Irishman]

13. Always laugh when they refer to a 19 yo as a teen.

I know it's technically true but prior to opening this thread, I thought the person was like 15 or something - an underage kid - based on the headline.

I get it. Nine-TEEN but still, this dude will be 20 soon.

[left-of-center2012]

18. Yep

19 is a teenager.

[Drunken Irishman]

23. Agreed. Still funny to me.

Because it hints that this person has more in common with a 13 year old than someone in their twenties and we both know that just isn't the case.

I think just call them adults. Leave the term teenagers to those who can be sexually active with one another and not face prison time.

[mopinko]

27. any good pediatric neurologist

would tie you to a chair and give you a good talking to.
kid cant even drink yet. that makes him a kid.

[Drunken Irishman]

30. lol that's just silly.

He can vote. He can fight in a war. He can be charged as an adult. Legally, he's an adult. He's not a kid.

[mopinko]

33. no. it's science.

[left-of-center2012]

29. That is how it appears to you --- emphasis 'you'

[Drunken Irishman]

31. Yes. Are you under the impression I said otherwise?

I don't consider a 19 year old the same as a 13 year old. That's my view. Calling a 19 year old a teenager is a way to deflect from their crime and downplay the fact they did it. A 19 year old is an adult. Not some angsty teen who causes problems while skipping the class in the 9th grade.

[left-of-center2012]

32. A teenager is a teenager is a teenager

The end

bye

[SharonClark]

14. The AJC (Atlanta paper)

said it happened when the person who monitors returns was on vacation.

[DFW]

19. "Brown has been charged with theft."

Really? Good thing they added that onto the story, because I thought he was going to be charged with arson.

[MissMillie]

25. With a little more finness this kid could end up being a tax accountant for mr. tRump (n/t)

.

[Silent3]

26. Why does it seem so typical that a person who does this...

...would both be buying guns and totalling a new car?

[mopinko]

28. testosterone poisoning

is real.