Two teens are caught shoplifting from Walmart and their excuse for doing it is almost as unbelievable as the theft itself
Two young women accused of shoplifting nearly $200 worth of merchandise from Walmart offered police an unusual explanation after they were confronted: they said they were having a terrible day, were irritated by the self-checkout process and eventually became so frustrated that they stopped properly scanning items.
The incident was featured by the bodycam channel Sgt. Pepperspray, whose narrator said Walmart employees caught the pair on surveillance using a skip-scanning method in which one item was scanned while several others were placed into the bagging area without being paid for.
According to the channel, 23 items worth almost $200 were taken before loss-prevention employees intervened and police were called.
Surveillance Video Shows The Skip-Scanning
When the responding officer arrived, a Walmart employee explained that the items had not been properly paid for and offered to show him the surveillance footage.
The employee also said the teens had cooperated and remained calm after being stopped, which kept the initial interaction relatively low-key despite the allegation.
After reviewing what happened, the officer read both women their rights and asked whether they still wanted to speak with him.
They agreed.
He then told them directly that Walmart had them on video and asked why they had done it.
That was when one of the teens began explaining that the theft had started with a frustrating checkout experience rather than a planned attempt to steal.
One Teen Blames Cherries And A Bad Day
She told the officer that she had been scanning groceries when the self-checkout system stopped her over a bag of cherries because the machine needed an employee to verify the weight.
She said she waited for assistance, only for the transaction to be canceled, forcing her to start over.
That, she claimed, became her “first straw.”
When she rescanned the cherries and the same problem happened again, she said she became increasingly angry.
“I just had a very bad day,” she told the officer.
The officer repeated the explanation back to her, essentially asking whether being upset was the reason she chose not to scan everything and walked out without paying for all of it.
She said yes, adding that everything had been irritating her and that the checkout process pushed her over the edge.
It was a strange justification because she simultaneously insisted she had enough money to pay.
She even offered to show the officer her checking account to prove that financial hardship was not the issue.
Officer Points To Items That Were Never Scanned
The officer was not persuaded by the argument that a malfunctioning register explained the entire incident.
He specifically asked about Lego products that had not been scanned at all.
The teen again said she had simply become angry and stopped caring about the process.
She argued that the problem was not an inability to pay but the frustration of repeatedly waiting for a store associate while trying to complete the purchase.
That explanation may have made emotional sense to her in the moment, but it did not change the basic problem: getting annoyed at a machine does not turn unpaid merchandise into free merchandise.
The officer also questioned why the pair had walked around the checkout area in a way that avoided passing directly in front of employees, suggesting the behavior looked more deliberate than a simple checkout mistake.
Arrest Decision Comes Quickly
After hearing their explanation, the officer told both women that they were going to jail.
One of them appeared shocked.
“What?” she asked.
The officer then explained that one of the teens also had an outstanding warrant related to possession of alcohol while under 21.
He handcuffed both women and told them they would be taken to jail, where a judge would later determine what happened next.
One teen said she was 19 and seemed surprised that she would be booked, prompting the officer to remind her that being over 18 meant she would be handled as an adult.
Because the responding officer was male and working alone, he also arranged for a female deputy to conduct the search before transport.
Search Leads To Another Problem
As officers went through the women’s belongings, they found what appeared to be a THC vape pen.
One of the teens said it belonged to her boyfriend’s child and explained that it had been placed in her purse while they were hiding belongings from a landlord.
The explanation did little to simplify the situation.
The officer asked why the item was still in her possession and reminded her that possession could create an additional criminal problem.
Later in the footage, he told the women that the THC pen was more serious than ordinary marijuana because of how the substance was classified.
The Sgt. Pepperspray narrator said both teens were ultimately charged with petty theft and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Officer Tells Them To Get Their Lives Together
Despite the arrests, the officer’s tone shifted into something closer to advice once the immediate enforcement issues were handled.
He told the teens they were young and had too many good things ahead of them to keep making choices like this.
“Get your [expletive] together,” he said.
He also warned them that Walmart takes theft seriously and that repeating the behavior could lead to much bigger consequences.
That moment gave the encounter a less theatrical ending than the teens’ original explanation might suggest. The officer clearly viewed the incident as foolish and avoidable rather than as evidence that they were beyond help.
Both Later Plead No Contest
According to Sgt. Pepperspray, both women later pleaded no contest to the charges and were found guilty.
They each received $500 in fines, mandatory community service and an order permanently barring them from returning to that Walmart.
For a theft that started with complaints about cherries, checkout delays and a bad mood, the outcome was far more serious than simply abandoning the cart and leaving the store would have been.
The bodycam footage also shows why excuses offered in the moment often sound weaker once the full circumstances are examined.
The women said they could afford the merchandise and were not desperate for the items, yet they still walked out without paying for 23 products.
In the end, the frustrating self-checkout machine was not what put them in handcuffs.
Their decision about what to do after becoming frustrated did.
Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, John developed a love for the great outdoors early on. With years of experience as a wilderness guide, he’s navigated rugged terrains and unpredictable weather patterns. John is also an avid hunter and fisherman who believes in sustainable living. His focus on practical survival skills, from building shelters to purifying water, reflects his passion for preparedness. When he’s not out in the wild, you can find him sharing his knowledge through writing, hoping to inspire others to embrace self-reliance.
