honestly if you’re lifting at a mall and have a car you should be going back to it as often as possible to put lifted stuff in it. like if you leave one store and they call security and you plan to stay at the mall, the two seconds it took to run outside and back in could save you a lot of trouble, especially if you’ve hit a lot of stores and not just the one.
i definitely understand this reasoning but i’ve never done it because i feel like it would look super sus for someone to just keep going back to their car and coming back after like every store they leave? idk especially if you don’t have shopping bags that are like “getting too heavy” or something
I feel like it’s better to be sus and them catch you with nothing on you, than to get caught and actually have everything you just lifted on you. cause if they’re already after you then it’s not going to matter. Even if they’re like “wow you left and came back a lot huh” they can’t just go out into the parking lot and be like THAT ONES YOUR CAR and go search it. There’s no proof you even came in a car let alone which one is yours. Which is why you don’t park near doors and outside cameras.
ok, i definitely see your point! the parking ramps at the mall i frequent most often have a shit ton of cameras, would you still recommend using this method in that case? maybe i could just put the items in my trunk in case they try to search my car because i heard somewhere that they can’t search your trunk specifically without a warrant or something. but idk if they could even search your car without a warrant, could they? sorry for so many questions lol, please don’t feel obligated to even answer any of them
Hey gal! Just so you know the police cannot search any part of your car without either: probable cause, your permission, or a warrant. This includes the front seats, back seats, floor, glove compartment and/or trunk. They also are not allowed to search your person (besides a frisk for weapons for their safety and yours) without one of the three. Probable cause must be based on solid evidence and not a “haunch.” This means that if an officer were to peer into your back seats and see store merchandise without any background information then they can’t just assume you’re stealing and search your vehicle. That being said, it’s still a good idea to keep merchandise out of view just in case a store were to have known you lifted merchandise, call the police and the police checked footage to see where your car is. If the police then walked past your car and saw the merchandise the store accused you of stealing through your car windows, they may have enough evidence to search… Especially if there’s any camera footage! If a police officer ever attempts to search you or ask that “it’s ok to take a look inside your car, right?” make it very, very clear that you do not consent to any searches in a very respectful manner. I know some cops can be extremely rude, but acting disrespectful will only lead to a multitude of other problems. Always tell cops, “I’m sorry and I understand you are just trying to do your job, but I am not consenting to searches of my belongings, person or car right now.” If the cop tries to intimidate you by asking what you have to hide simply say, “I apologize again and I am not trying to be disrespectful but my father told me not to allow the police to search me without speaking to a lawyer first. If you present a warrant I will be happy to open my car for you but as of right now I am not giving you my permission and I appreciate very much your understanding that such is my right.” As long as you follow that, the police can NOT search any area of your car. (Same goes for your personal belongings, like your purse/bags, and your person)!
If you’re still worried, I would definitely suggest keeping items in your trunk so they are more hidden. What I typically do is bring my purse/bags into my car and empty my lifted goods into those big reusable shopping bags or a gym bag that I keep in my back seat. From there, I open my trunk and put the bags with the merchandise into there. That way it just looks like I’m moving my gym bag without being able to see what exactly is inside it. Way less sus than cameras catching you dumping a ton merchandise from your purse to your trunk and everything is well hidden. I usually do this after every store and move my car around a lot.
I hope that helps a bit! Stay safe!
I FOUND IT??? (also thanks for the other information + posts y'all ily)
