What's not lying well: who steals children's belongings in the play areas of the shopping center

Russian parents are increasingly discussing on the Internet the increased theft of children's items that occur in the play areas of shopping malls, closets of cafes and restaurants, and other public places. Izvestia investigated why the theft of clothes for the youngest is becoming an urgent problem and who is taking someone else's.

"The suit is brand new, the wheels creak"

Reports of thefts of expensive brands of children's items are increasingly appearing on social networks. Mittens, hats, scarves of famous Western brands can cost several thousand rubles, which attracts thieves. However, at the top of the list of "stolen" items is shoes, which children usually take off at the entrance to the play area.

Photo: RIA Novosti/Pavel Lisitsyn

"Shoes worth 6.5 thousand rubles and a hat worth 3 thousand rubles were stolen from us overnight," Elizaveta M. told Izvestia on condition of anonymity. — Another parent's jumpsuit was "stolen" on the same day.

On social media, the affected parents spread information about possible thieves and even their photos in the hope of catching or shaming the criminals. An analysis of the comments showed that the attackers are most often hunting for orthopedic shoes, expensive jackets and hats of well-known brands.

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According to a law enforcement source, they are well aware of the problem.

"A very common scenario is the theft of things from children invited to birthdays and celebrations," says the operative. — Children are distracted by animators, and the space itself, as a rule, has no boundaries — anyone can enter. They take expensive things, shoes, gadgets, smartphones.

According to him, in the shopping malls of big cities, this kind of theft is committed by representatives of ethnic criminal communities.

Explained for the "stuff"

The security services of several shopping malls informally confirmed the existence of the problem to Izvestia. According to a security guard at one of the shopping malls, who agreed to speak on condition of anonymity, the attackers operate according to two main schemes.

Photo: RIA Novosti/Maxim Blinov

In the first case, the thief comes to the play area with his own child in worn clothes and shoes, which are not a pity to throw away. While the children are playing, the criminal notices expensive branded shoes, hats, and scarves in advance. Then he simply puts his child's shoes and clothes on, leaving his own things in their place, and leaves the crime scene.

The second scenario plays out when the game room is noisy, for example, during a children's birthday party.

— Several "stealers" purposefully collect things left at the entrance — several pairs of shoes and sets of clothes at once — and quickly disappear, — says the security officer.

According to the source of Izvestia, parents who discover theft usually cause a scandal, although according to the rules, the administration is not responsible for valuables left in the games and dressing rooms. "But the reaction of moms and dads is understandable," admits the guard.

Effects

Further, the stolen items are sold through online ad services, thematic chats in messengers, flea market groups on the Internet or privately. It is usually quite difficult to identify children's items, even if they are quite expensive, which is what the dealers of stolen goods use. In addition, even quite expensive clothes and shoes for children still do not reach the price level when victims consider it necessary to contact law enforcement agencies.

Photo: Global Look Press/fotototo/blickwinkel

— The law does not qualify the theft of children's belongings from citizens as an aggravating circumstance, although such crimes cause the most negative reaction in our society, — says lawyer Ekaterina Krasnova. — The actions of an attacker may fall under art. 7.27 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation due to insignificance (if the damage is less than 2.5 thousand rubles). If the damage exceeds this threshold, then the thief will have to bear responsibility in accordance with art. 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ("Theft"). In some cases, such acts, if they are open in nature, can be classified as robbery.

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According to the lawyer, the vast majority of such stories end in nothing — the owners of things prefer not to get involved with bureaucratic procedures related to the criminal process.

— The situation: a mom with a baby in her arms is waiting for the police, requires a video recording from the guards — all these procedures are lengthy, exhausting and unnerving, — says the expert. — That's what criminals count on. And the intent still needs to be proved — if we are talking about a situation with a substitution of a thing, then the suspect's position is just confused.

I stole you, I stole you

However, they steal not only clothes and shoes, but also much more expensive strollers and sleds. A few days ago, a local resident was detained in Cherepovets, who, while walking with her child, "grabbed" someone else's sled-cane. The damage caused to the victims was estimated at 11 thousand rubles. A similar case was recorded in Naberezhnye Chelny, where a 73—year-old pensioner stole a neighbor's wheelchair in a common vestibule and immediately sold it. Now he will face criminal liability for theft. Another theft of "children's transport" in a public place was uncovered in Kiselevsk (Kuzbass), where a woman stole a snowmobile from a playground and tried to sell it through a thrift store, where she was detained by the police.