What’s the Scoop owner Anthony Womack says San Francisco can recover from its crime epidemic if the younger generation creates change and refuses to flee on ‘Varney & Co.’
A grocery store in the San Francisco Bay Area has installed metal emergency gates at its entrance in an attempt to deter rampant shoplifting.
Stocks in this Article
A Safeway in Vallejo also shuttered one of its entrances, according to KPIX reporter Betty Yu, who tweeted an image of the safeguard, which sounds an alarm if a shoplifter attempts to leave.
The supermarket chain location, which is owned by Albertsons Companies, joins other locations in the San Francisco area that have taken similar measures in recent years amid the city’s rise in thefts.
SAN FRANCISCO SAFEWAY ADDING BARRIERS TO CURTAIL SHOPLIFTERS
The Bay Area, which has seen property crime rise 10.4% since last year, has also been afflicted with a spike in smash-and-grab robberies, where shoplifters armed with bats and other weapons make off with thousands in merchandise from high-end stores.
The gates are part of “long-planned security improvements” for the store, a Safeway spokesperson told FOX Business in 2021.
“Like other local businesses, we are working on ways to curtail escalating theft to ensure the well-being of our employees and to foster a welcoming environment for our customers,” the spokesperson said. “Their safety remains our top priority.”
FOX Business has reached out to Albertsons for comment regarding the gate at the Vallejo location.
SAN FRANCISCO POLICE SECRETLY STAKE OUT RETAIL STORES, PHARMACIES TO CURB RAMPANT SHOPLIFTING
Safeway food store company logo above store entrance. (Don & Melinda Crawford/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Last fall, the police chief of San Francisco and Democrat Mayor London Breed said they would address the city’s rampant shoplifting crimes by dedicating more police and beefing up coordination to make it easier to report theft.
GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE
An aerial view of the San Francisco city skyline, Oct. 28, 2021. (Reuters/Carlos Barria / Reuters Photos)
Pharmacies such as Walgreens have closed down in response to the increased theft, which Breed has said is detrimental to those who rely on such establishments.
FOX Business’ Daniella Genovese contributed to this report.
