Colorado Supermarket Employee Fired For Recording 3 Men Stealing $500 Of Laundry Detergent

When Santino Burrola, an employee at King Soopers, was notified about an ongoing theft at the store, his immediate reaction was to take out his phone and start recording the incident.

CBS News Colorado

“When I looked there was already a guy halfway headed out with a food cart full of laundry detergents and scent boosters and what have you,” Burrola told CBS Colorado. “My first instinct, record.”

Burrola, a former military police officer, observed as the three thieves hastily rushed to load a black Chevy Trax vehicle. One of them opened the doors, another swiftly tossed a basket filled with items into the back seat, while the third struggled to empty the overflowing shopping cart.

“Really, bro, you got to resort to this? The economy isn’t that bad,” Burrola could be heard in the now-viral video shared by the Arapahoe Sheriff’s Office.

“Better gettin’ while the gettin’s good,” Burrola joked to the men.

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As the three individuals tried to escape from the parking lot, the driver of the getaway car managed to be a bit quicker than the two still outside the vehicle, who struggled to get inside.

This gave Burrola an opportunity to swiftly remove a sheet of foil that was covering the license plate.

Once the men successfully entered the car and left the vicinity, Burrola promptly contacted the police. Furthermore, he shared the recorded video on social media, which proved to be helpful for the investigators in their efforts.

“So I posted it on TikTok, hoping that somebody would recognize them,” said Burrola about the video that was seen 1.5 million times, including by rapper Snoop Dogg.

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When Burrola came back to work for his next shift, he found out that he had been temporarily suspended. However, a week later, he was fired from his job.

“Me and the union rep sat down with them and they recommended termination,” Burrola said. “I would never let any criminal conduct slide, especially when it’s happening right in front of me.”

According to Burrola, he did not violate any rules or engage physically with the thieves. His sole intention was to assist the community by capturing the incident on video.

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“Did I feel that I overstepped boundaries? Not really because I didn’t physically touch them or alter their shoplifting in any way, I just revealed the license plate to help the community to be aware, the police be aware and to help better catch them,” Burrola told 9News.

“Investigators have already identified and arrested the driver, Jorge Pantoja, 32, the man in the green shirt,” the Arapahoe Sherriff’s Office said in a statement. “Pantoja is currently in custody at the Adams County Detention Facility on unrelated felony charges. He has also been charged with Theft/Shoplifting, a Class 2 Misdemeanor.”

The police are still looking for the two passengers since only the driver was arrested on a different serious charge. The driver also faces a lesser charge related to the theft.

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During their investigation, the police got in touch with the car's registered owner, who had loaned the vehicle to a friend. They later located and apprehended the driver.

“The driver was then contacted, arrested, and stated he picked up two other males at the Light Rail station at I-25 and Belleview and offered them an opportunity to make some money. The men told the driver their names were Robert and Bugsy,”

The remaining two thieves are still at large. The supermarket chain operating in the Rocky Mountains is a subsidiary of the Kroger Company. According to Burrola, the company has a policy that prohibits employees from pursuing thieves or interfering in theft incidents.

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“We are disappointed by the increased level of crime across retail establishments and the impact these incidents have on our associates and customers. We remain committed to working in partnership with local law enforcement to address this issue, as safety remains a top priority,” King Soopers said in a statement to CBS Colorado.

“We have security measures in place to help prevent crime and de-escalate such confrontations to minimize the risk to our associates. While we are unable to comment on personnel matters, we value our hardworking associates and their safe return home,” the statement concluded. 

After being fired from the store, Burrola took to TikTok and shared a subsequent video. In this video, he conducted an impromptu press conference where he posed questions to himself and provided the answers.

“I was limited to my abilities due to the fact that I was employed there,” Burrola answered on why he didn’t “deck” the thieves.

Burrola said he received “racists comments” on the video but said, “I didn’t see color when I confronted them, I’ve seen criminals, white, black, brown, purple, it didn’t matter, a crime was being committed and wrong is wrong and a crime is a crime.”

“Let me tell you something, if something is happening right in front of me, I’m gonna make it my business,” Burrola concluded.

To help Burrola recuperate his lost wages, his family initiated a GoFundMe campaign on his behalf.

“He was not given severance pay and was planning to move to Florida to be closer to family. This loss of position has put a hold on plans and has made him fall behind in a couple of bills,” the GoFundMe states.

The decision of King Soopers to terminate Burrola's employment sparked widespread outrage among individuals who expressed their dismay on the GoFundMe page. Many supporters lauded Burrola for his quick thinking and commended his actions.

“Sorry to read you were fired recording these losers thinking they could just go in and steal. Good for you though,” one comment read.

“It is completely absurd that this dedicated employee, who was clearly doing his job in trying to protect his stores merchandise and assist the police in arresting these thieves, was fired due to the insane regulations these corporations have created regarding retail theft,” another commenter added.

“I can understand the ‘do not physically engage’ rule in order to prevent employees or innocent bystanders from being hurt, but the action this employee took was assisting the business, the community, and the police. He did not deserve to be fired by any means.”

In May, two employees at a Lululemon store in Georgia were terminated from their positions after they contacted the police regarding three masked individuals who had revisited the Atlanta store. These individuals had previously engaged in theft on multiple occasions at the same location.

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“We have a zero-tolerance policy that we train our educators on around engaging during a theft,” Lululemon CEO Calvin McDonald said after the two employees were fired.