A Lowe’s employee has been fired from a Georgia store for intervening in a shoplifting operation that left her with a black eye.
Donna Hansbrough, 68, tried to stop a gang of shoplifters from stealing more than $2,000 worth of merchandise from her Rincon, Georgia store last month.
The thieves refused to leave silently, repeatedly slapping her face and leaving a black eye.
Despite her heroic efforts to stand up to the criminals, Hansbrough’s was fired by Lowe’s after 13 years for violating company policy that state personnel who witness a shoplifting may not intervene and instead call the authorities.
“The guy decided he wanted to be let go, so he hit me and grabbed my glasses while I was still holding on to the shopping cart,” Hansbrough, who worked for Lowe’s for more than thirteen years, recalled to WTOC.
Donna Hansbrough, 68, tried to stop a gang of shoplifters and was left with a bruised face and unemployed
“They say if you see someone stealing something out the door, don’t follow it and don’t go out there,” but “I’m just sick of seeing things coming out the door,” Hansbrough said
“He kept hitting me,” she said through tears.
The suspects have been named by authorities as Takyah Berry, her uncle Joseph Berry and another man, Jarmar Lawton. Both Berrys remain at large, according to police.
“They say if you see someone stealing something out the door, don’t follow them and don’t go out,” Hansbrough told the Effingham Herald.
“I’m just sick of seeing things just disappear out the door.” I basically lost all training. “Everything they tell you, I just…I just lost track,” she explained.
“I wasn’t expecting to be fired, maybe with a reprimand or a suspension,” Hansbrough said. “I’ll look for a new job.” I can’t sit at home. I’m not that type of person.’
If the shoplifters are brought to justice, Hansbrough said she will help authorities with whatever they need: “If they need me, I will be there.”
Detective Vance of the Rincon Police Department said the worker suffered “two traumatic events at the same time: she was violently assaulted and at the same time she lost her job, her happiness, her peace”.
Joseph Berry (pictured) has been named a suspect by Rincon Police along with his niece
Rincon Police believe Takyah Berry (left) and Jarmar Lawton (right) were also involved in the incident
Lowes did not immediately respond to ‘s request for comment.
It is the latest in a string of cases in the US in which employees have lost their jobs for intervening in shoplifting incidents.
In June, an employee at a King Soopers grocery store in Colorado was fired for filming shoplifters stealing $500 worth of laundry detergent and loading it into their car.
Santino Burrola became active when a gang of thieves attacked the store in Arapahoe County, Colorado on June 18 and captured video of the crime that has since gone viral.
He chased the group out of the store and filmed them loading countless boxes into their car, even peeling off a license plate cover to track them down.
But his actions allegedly violated the shop’s anti-shoplifting policy, and Burrola was fired on the spot after meeting his union rep.
The retail worker’s video of the shoplifters quickly garnered attention after he posted it on social media, and it was even shared by the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office as the crime continues to be investigated.
Burrola said when he saw the thieves taking heaps of laundry detergent, his “first instinct was to record something.”
Santino Burrola slammed King Soopers for firing him over the shoplifting video, saying “I just registered and exposed criminals.”
As he followed the men out of the store, Burrola was heard mocking the thieves and questioning their daring robbery.
“Really, brother? Do you have to resort to it?’ he said in the video. “The economy is not doing so badly.”
The thugs then attempted to drive away from Burrola while he continued to take footage nearby, resulting in him ripping off a tinfoil to reveal her license plate.
But the store was outraged by his bold attempt, and Burrola said parent company Kroger felt he violated their policy against employee interference in theft.
Lululemon was also criticized for firing employees who confronted masked thieves at its Peachtree Corners store in Atlanta.
Two Lululemon employees have been fired for “violating employee policy” after brazen thieves stole piles of expensive yoga gear and tried to stop them.
Shocking footage shows masked robbers stealing merchandise from displays outside the store before rushing to their getaway car.
Jennifer Ferguson and Rachel Rogers, who worked on the front lines, claim they were fired for trying to stop them and “violating staff handbook guidelines” about not interfering in a robbery.
Shocking footage shows masked robbers stealing merchandise from displays outside the Lululemon store in Atlanta before rushing to their getaway car
Jennifer Ferguson (pictured) and Rachel Rogers were allegedly fired for trying to stop the thieves at a Lululemon and “violating staff handbook guidelines” about not interfering in a robbery
Stores across the US are seeing a sharp rise in crime, and millions of dollars in losses have forced some major retailers to close stores as rampant theft plagues businesses.
In 2021, shoplifting cost retailers $100 billion.
Shops in San Francisco, New York and many other metropolitan areas have been hit by a rise in shoplifting.
This has led to retailers locking many items under lock and key to deter brazen thieves from looting merchandise and leaving stores.