Mother Outraged for Getting Banned from NYC Grocery Store, Causes Media Uproar
Manhattan’s Upper East Side might be one of the richest zip codes in the world, but that does not stop residents from stealing Red Bull.
After paying for $50 worth of groceries, Drassinower had not paid for an additional $15 worth of items, which included milk, beer, and Red Bull, that she had placed at the bottom of her 20-month-old’s stroller while she was shopping. As soon as she exited the Fairway grocery store, she was surrounded by security guards, who confiscated the unpaid items and banned her form the store – for life. And if she ever returns, she can be arrested for trespassing.
Drassinower, who claims she “simply forgot” to pay for the additional items, lives in a luxury high-rise down the block from the grocery store, according to local TV station, WPIX.
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But the store’s manager, Howie Glicksburg, fully believes her intentions were to steal and has a video he believes backs up his claim. He also did not like her attitude afterwards.
“She threatened to go to the press and get a lawyer," Glicksburg said. "We had to protect ourselves. Had she called and said it was all a mistake, I’m sure we could have worked it all out.”
Besides, he told The New York Post, the store has banned several hundred customers for shoplifting and it doesn't matter “if somebody is shoplifting intentionally or not…we cannot discriminate and say one person can't come back and the next person can come back."
The story would not have been known to anybody if Drassinower has not been so vocal about being banned from the store. She followed up on her threat to Glicksburg and went to the local New York City media with her story. However, there has been a backlash on blogs around the country, who have mocked Drassinower for making a big deal out of nothing.
In response to Drassinower’s anger over Glicksburg’s equal opportunity shoplifter policy, NYC blog The Gothamist joked, “Whoa, whoa, whoa-a uniform set of rules that apply to everybody? Does Glickman realize where his store is located? Is this the Upper East Side, or SOVIET RUSSIA?”
Another reason why Drassinower’s shoplifting struggle has received so much attention is because many find the situation funny that such a rich person would shoplift.
Former NYC mayor Rudy Giuliani’s daughter was arrested last year for stealing over $100 worth of makeup from a Sephora store, coincidentally right down the street from the Fairway store. Giuliani was probably best-known for his dogged stance on crime, fueling the irony.
One rich person who probably understands Drassinower’s ordeal is Winona Ryder, whose famous shoplifting case gained her media notoriety for years. Ryder claimed that she stole $5,000 worth of merchandise from Saks Fifth Avenue in Beverly Hills because she was on painkillers for a hurt elbow and was “confused,” much like how Drassinower “forgot.”
And everybody’s favorite shoplifter is probably Britney Spears, who allegedly walked out of an adult store wearing a wig that she had not paid for.
It has not been determined whether not Spears exited the store with the wig so that store employees would not recognize her as she left.
