Photo: @ThaGodfather01/TikTok
A supermarket employee in Colorado was fired after recording a video of three men stealing an estimated $500 worth of laundry detergent from his place of employment on Father's Day.
Santino Burrola, who worked at King Soopers in Arapahoe County, was notified of the theft as it took place and decided to record it on his phone.
“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.”
The former military police officer captured the three thieves quickly loading the items into the trunk and back seat of a black Chevrolet Trax in the video.
“Really bro you got to resort to this? The economy isn’t that bad,” Burrola was heard saying in the video, which has since gone viral after being shared by the Arapahoe Sheriff’s Office.
“Better gettin while the gettin’s good,” he joked.
The three suspects then attempted to flee the scene, at which point Burrola ripped a sheet of foil covering the getaway car's license plate. He then called the police and later shared the footage of the incident on his TikTok account.
“So I posted it on TikTok hoping that somebody would recognize them,” said Burrola about the video, which already has more than 1.5 million views.
Burrola said he was notified that he was suspended from the supermarket during his next shift and terminated a week later.
“Me and the union rep sat down with them and they recommended termination,” Burrola said via CBS Colorado. “I would never let any criminal conduct slide especially when it’s happening right in front of me.”
Burrola claims he didn't break any rules nor touch the thieves during the incident and was, instead, attempting to help the community.
“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.
Police said the driver of the vehicle, identified as Jorge Pantoja, 32, was arrested on an unrelated felony and charged with theft/shoplifting (Class 2 Misdemeanor) in relation to the incident, while the other two passengers are still at large.