Unfortunately, random acts of violence aren’t as surprising anymore. There are reports all across the world about people who harm others for virtually no reason. So when an incident occurred at Walmart in Windsor, Connecticut, it only reminded me of the bad that people could do. Let’s just hope that Walmart is doing everything they can to reduce the chances of it ever happening again.
Cheryl Johnson went for a late-night shopping trip to Walmart with her husband, Mel. This massive retailer has always proven to be a wonderfully affordable and all-encompassing retail story. For Cheryl and Mel, they never would have expected to find what they found when they pulled their cart out of the stack in the entryway.
Mel pulled the cart backward, and then he quickly removed his hands from the handle and winced. As he held his suddenly cut palm, he glanced under the handle of the shopping cart, where a razor stuck out of it.
Cheryl and Mel immediately notified the manager about the razor, filed an incident report, and called the police. They didn’t want this to happen to anyone else. While the police began to arrive, the manager rounded up his employees and had them check every single cart in the story for another razor. Luckily, no other ones were found.
The police currently have two ideas for how this might have happened. First, it could have been a prank. Someone may have had the intention of harming someone for no reason because bad people are out there looking to do that exact thing. I hope it’s not the case.
The officers’ second guess is that these razors could be there to help customers steal from retailers. According to JumbleJoy.com, Walmart Inc. says that shoplifters might be using razors to cut security tags and remain unnoticed by security cameras. Usually, the shoplifters remove the blade or place it backward so it doesn’t harm anyone, but that would mean that shoplifters are all a bit more considerate than we’d expect. And I wouldn’t bet on that.
Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time this has happened. Back in 2015, Lisa Zimmerman from Dawson, North Dakota actually had the same thing happen to her. We wish that this wasn’t a common problem or that people wouldn’t be so careless or thoughtless to be doing things like this, but it keeps happening. It needs to stop before someone gets seriously hurt.
Cheryl and Mel are both very thankful that the razor blade didn’t cause more damage. Considering that kids often steer carts for their parents, it could have happened to them too. And what would have happened if the cart was left out in the rain and the blade had gotten rusty?
It’s important to look before you grab onto shopping carts, no matter where you are. While being overly cautious is no way to live, cutting yourself while grocery shopping also isn’t a great way to do it either.
What do you think Walmart and other retailers can do to help prevent this problem from spreading?