Today I was walking around our local precinct and noticed a young couple shoplifting. The man loitered near the exit door, the woman threw a few things out to him, then left the shop a couple of minutes later with a few more things in her arms. They disappeared around the corner and dumped the stuff in a quiet alley, then the bloke walked over to a charity shop, telling her was going to get a bag. I just happened to be leaving the first shop when I noticed their furtive behaviour, then by coincidence I crossed the precinct amd was thinking of going in the charity shop when this bloke went in there and asked for a carrier bag. I honestly wasn't following them, but as I'm tall they probably wondered if I was a plain clothes cop, because they couldn't seem to avoid me, our paths just kept crossing!
It crossed my mind to do the "right" thing and report this to the shop they had stolen from, but several things stopped me. Firstly, they were stealing food and they both looked a bit dishevelled and scruffy - I thought maybe they were homeless and hungry. The man was very thin and edgy - he looked like he might have a drug problem, so maybe they spent their money on drugs/booze then had nothing for food. So, apart from protecting the shop's profit margins, I couldn't see much point in getting this couple arrested by the police when they're just trying to survive - it would feel like kicking someone when they're down. Secondly, I probably would have got a whole load of abuse and aggro if I'd snitched on them.
Recently there was a report on the news about shoplifting being much more prevalent now than before, and they talked about the way everyone pays more for their shopping because of the cost of shoplifting, so I can see why some people would think it's right to report shoplifters. But when it comes to homeless people stealing to eat, it seems different. Do you agree, or AIBU?