Auckland liquor store boss says police told him to let detained shoplifter go

Wednesday, 24 July 2024

An Auckland liquor store owner says his Kohimarama shop was targeted by thieves on Tuesday.

One man escaped with two bottles of water and a bottle of vodka, but another man was detained by the store’s staff.

Police took an hour and a half to respond to the incident and said the man should’ve been let go, the store’s owner said.

An Auckland liquor store owner says his staff detained a shoplifter for over an hour and a half while waiting for police to arrive.

Duna Mittal, the owner of Liquorland Kohimarama, said two men entered the store on Tuesday afternoon and sought to take bottles from the shelves.

One of the men got away with two bottles of water and a bottle of vodka, Mittal told Stuff, but the second man was grabbed by staff members.

“Our staff just literally held him and then pulled him to the ground,” he said.

The man was given water and food and remained quiet while everyone waited for police to arrive.

“He was trying to get his boss to come and pay for it or something, so that he could end the ordeal,” Mittal said. “He was a very calm individual.”

Mittal was frustrated with how long it took for police to respond, saying the shop first called 111 around 4pm, but officers only arrived after 5.30pm.

On arrival, police told Mittal to let the man go next time as he could have had a weapon, something they also said on the phone while staff had the man detained.

“Even on the phone they were saying that if he is calm just let him go. But why should we let people go for something that they’ve done wrong,” Mittal said.

“We have, in my view, done a service for you guys [the police] and made their jobs a lot easier.”

Mittal said this was the third time their store had been robbed this year.

“People walk in, pick up things and just walk out,” he said.

Stuff has approached the police for comment on the incident.

CORRECTION:** An earlier version of this story made reference to a “citizen’s arrest”, which is a legal term that may not be applicable in this instance. It has been removed. (Amended Wednesday, 24 June, 12.20pm).**