Scenario: You walk into a department store, see a beautiful pair of costume earings during your shopping spree, grab them off the display and have a good inspection. As soon as you are done, you walk away from the display and carry on with your spree. You walk out of the store happy with a few items that you have bought despite intentionally walking into said store just for some browsing; you shopperholic you. As you reach for your car keys in your purse, you realise you have accidentally slipped the earings in the purse and have walked out of the store without paying for them.
The above sounds exactly like something I can have easily done. I am no thief, but I have walked out of the shops with items I hadn't paid for. One day I was fetched from the car by a bakery employee after I walked out of fhe shop with a loaf of bread and a bottle of milk. Another time I simply just never put back a pair of R60.00 sunglasses at Mr Price and realised when I got home that I was wearing unpaid for items.
Is it stealing? Absolutely (Mr President's voice), since if caught, it would be very difficult to prove your intention was not criminal.
Why is this being brought about? Because I am now sitting with a pair of earings and don't know how to go about returning them.
So I ask, have you ever unintentionally stolen anything and what did you do once you discovered what had just happened?
by Queen Troll
