The old woman could not believe her ears. The grocery store manager had banned her from the premises in front of a crowd. She was devastated but she was not going down without a fight.
Source: Highly Healthy
The manager had no idea who she really was. And she had no problem using her status against him. And when she came back a few days later, the store manager immediately realized that he made a huge mistake.
A frequent customer
Julia was an old lady who barely leaves her house. After all, she was 92 years old. But every time she did, she always spent it in the grocery store. She loves to stroll around and check out every aisle looking for a new product that she could try out.
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If she sees something new, she would buy it and take it with her home – even if she did not really need it. Going to the grocery store also gave her a chance to stretch her legs and walk around someplace else other than her home. It was a relaxing habit.
The floor manager
As far as Julia was concerned, she was invisible during every trip she made to the grocery store. But the store’s floor manager had actually become familiar with her and had been keeping an eye on her for some time now.
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Apparently, he had noticed how Julia would come in and roam around the grocery store for hours only to end up buying just one or two items – sometimes none at all. The floor manager started thinking that there was something off about it.
The evil plan
Julia’s constant presence in the grocery store bothered the floor manager. He observed that she always took her sweet time roaming around the whole grocery store. But even if he watched her like a hawk, he could not find a good reason to give her the boot.
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She was not even loud or disruptive – she often kept to herself. He knew that his boss would not consider banning anyone unless it was for a huge offense like shoplifting. So the floor manager came up with a plan to take matters into his own hands.
Putting the plan into action
The floor manager waited for Julia’s next visit to the grocery store. When he spotted her entering the sliding doors, he put his game face on. He waited till Julia stopped at an aisle to inspect the products there before he approached her with the best smile he had.
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The floor manager feigned interest to assist her as she shopped. This startled Julia as this does not usually happen on her trip to the grocery store. She waved him off after telling him that she did not need any assistance.
Shoplifting accusation
The floor manager observed her make her way around the grocery store. When she was nearing the last aisle, he immediately went to his boss, Augustine. The floor manager reported that he saw an old woman smuggle a bottle into her purse in a dramatic voice.
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Augustine’s eyes narrowed. As the general manager of the grocery store, it was his job to check if this was true and deal with this kind of thing. The floor manager pointed to Julia, who was already at the cash register.
Finding proof
Augustine stopped Julia before she could head for the exit. Cutting to the chase, Augustine asked if he could take a look inside Julia’s bag. He told her that he got a tip that someone saw her shoplifting.
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Why would she steal anything from a store that she loved and frequented? She opened her bag for inspection, confident in the fact that she was innocent. But it did not take long for Augustine to retrieve a liquor bottle from her bag.
The banishment
Julia was shocked. She claimed it was impossible. Why would she shoplift a bottle of liquor? She did not even drink alcohol! But Augustine had seen enough. He had a zero-tolerance policy for shoplifting and there were no exceptions.
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A crowd started to gather around them as he held up the expensive bottle of liquor. The bottle was found in her bag and to him, the evidence was clear. He informed Julia that she was banned from the grocery store from this day on.
He would not change his mind
Julia could not believe what she was hearing. She pleaded with Augustine, saying that she was innocent and that the grocery store was an important part of her routine. Why would she ruin all that just for a bottle of liquor that she does not even drink?
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A few feet away, the floor manager giddy with excitement. He was finally free of this old woman who wandered around the grocery store like a ghost. Finally, there will be more room for customers that actually bought a lot of products.
The threat
Embarrassed and defeated, Julia headed towards the exit. Then, she turned back to face Augustine. Julia said she had done nothing wrong and she was not going down without a fair fight. She told him that this was not over and that she would be back.
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Augustine did not think much of Julia’s threat. After all, she was just an old woman. She would probably not have the energy to act on vengeance. The day dragged on and there were only a few customers. The lack of work made Augustine’s mind drift to Julia.
Having second thoughts
Could it be possible that the old woman was innocent? After all, it looked like she was saying the truth when she said she did not steal anything. But a crowd was there and everyone should know that shoplifters should not be tolerated in their store.
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Augustine shook his head and thought that he was just feeling guilty over breaking Julia’s heart that’s why he was overthinking things. So, Augustine told himself not to dwell on it any longer. What is done is done.
Nothing happened
Days had passed and they have not seen Julia. It looked like everything she said was an empty threat. This relieved Augustine, who hated confrontations. He went on about his duties, thinking that everything was put to the past.
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Meanwhile, the floor manager seemed to be on a high after his plan worked. The success made him want to go on a power trip and ban every customer who bought too few products or spent too much time roaming around the grocery store.
Cops arrive
Five days after the incident with Julia, Augustine arrived at the grocery store and found a squad of police officers in it. He began to panic and thought that a robbery had taken place. Fortunately, this was not the case.
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The squad leader showed Augustine his badge and a warrant to search the premises. When Augustine asked for an explanation, the squad leader simply told him that Julia sent them. Augustine had no choice but to let the police roam around his grocery store.
This was serious
The police officers did not say much about what they were doing or what they had found. The cops were spread out so he could not monitor what each one was doing. The squad left without saying a word to him.
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The staff members had their questions and all Augustine could tell them was that it had something to do with Julia. Augustine did not look happy about the situation. The grocery store never had problems with the authorities before.
Who was she?
Augustine was confused about how the police got involved. How could an old lady like Julia get a search warrant and mobilize a whole squad of police officers to the store? Surely the police had more pressing matters to work on than a shoplifting case.
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Was Julia a woman of important stature? Augustine spent the rest of the day trying to look for more information on Julia. But he did not know a thing about her background so he did not come up with a thing.
She comes back
The next morning, the same squad of police officers showed up at the grocery store. But this time, they had somebody else with them – it was Julia. Augustine found this strange. Usually, cops would act on their own and not bring complainants with them.
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The squad leader then asked if they could speak to Augustine in his office. Julia was walking with her head held high as if she knew she would emerge the champion in this situation and this worried him.
Her grandson
Once they were inside the office, the squad leader asked Augustine to call in the floor manager too. The floor manager came up 10 minutes later. His face turned red when he saw all the police waiting for him and he immediately felt nervous.
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The squad leader then spoke up and introduced himself as Julia’s grandson. Now this explains why Julia was able to pull this stunt off. The squad leader called in a few favors from his station so that they can retrieve the security footage of that day.
The truth revealed
The squad leader then showed his laptop to Augustine and played the footage that clearly showed the floor manager putting the liquor bottle in Julia’s bag when he stopped to talk to her. Different angles showed the same thing.
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Augustine could not believe his eyes. He can’t believe he forgot about the security cameras. He should have checked the footage first before accusing Julia. Meanwhile, the floor manager paled. He forgot about the security cameras too. It was too late now.
Settlement and conditions
The squad leader informed them that a slander case is already prepared for the floor manager. But Julia was willing to drop the case as long as the ban gets lifted and the floor manager will be fired. She just wanted to clear her name and have the grocery store back in her routine.
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The floor manager could not even defend himself. He tried to think of some clever reasoning to justify his actions but could not come up with a thing. He realized that he had crossed the line and that there was no way he could keep his job after this.
Justice is served
Augustine breathed a sigh of relief. He said he was happy to take that settlement. Augustine gave his floor manager a disgusted and disappointed look. He fired the floor manager on the spot. From that day on, Julia’s ban was lifted.
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Augustine apologized to her numerous times. Julia assured him that she harbored no ill will against Augustine since he was just doing his job. She was satisfied with the fact that the floor manager was fired and that was enough justice for her.