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SOUTH SALT LAKE — A family run hardware store hit by theft is spreading the word about the method thieves used and asking for help to identify the thieves.
A man used a baby carrier to hide a DeWalt combo kit containing a drill and impact driver, worth about $250, and carry it out of M&M Tool and Machinery, located at 3362 S. Main, at about 1 p.m. Wednesday, according to Amy Neeley. She works at the store, which her father owns, with other family members and friends.
“If someone is holding a baby carrier, it’s not usually a situation where you’re confrontational with them,” she said. “You’re vulnerable to the situation — that this person has a baby — whereas if he had just been there and had a backpack it would have been completely different.”
A couple entered the store together and the woman drew the attention of employees by asking a lot of questions and being loud while the man went into a corner and grabbed the tool, according to Neeley. She said a customer thought the man might be up to something, so an employee followed the man out of the store and asked if he had been helped.
The man reportedly told the employee that he was going to wait in the car while his wife shopped because their baby was crying. The employee said he didn’t hear any crying, but didn’t feel comfortable asking more questions.
“I think instinctively there were a couple of guys who thought there was something unusual, but we have people who come in here with babies so you just don’t think about that,” she said. “If someone comes in with a backpack, everyone’s all over them. (They ask them to) leave their backpack here or follow them, but with a baby carrier it just threw everyone off.”
The woman stayed in the store for a few more minutes but didn’t purchase anything, according to Neeley. She said after the couple drove away employees checked surveillance video and determined the tool had been stolen.
“We’re a family business,” she said. “We’ve been here for like 80 years. We’re a small business and it really hurts to have something like that. We have to sell a lot of tools to make up for that loss. The margin on tools is so low that (the theft) is a lot. It’s a big deal to us.”
If someone is holding a baby carrier, it's not usually a situation where you're confrontational with them.
–Amy Neeley
The store is hoping the surveillance video helps to identify the people connected to the theft. Neeley said they suspect the couple has used the same tactic at other stores.
The theft is currently being investigated by the South Salt Lake Police Department, according to police spokesman Gary Keller. He said people use a variety of methods to steal items.
“The sky's the limit with these people if they’re intent on getting something out,” Keller said. “I’ve heard of women shoplifters taking like a full skirt and hiding a whole ham under the skirt in a supermarket. There are just all kinds of gadgets and gizmos and slip boxes to hide ill-gotten goods.”
Anyone with information about the theft can contact South Salt Lake police at 801-412-3600.
