Home Depot employee fired for apprehending thief

sequence — Thu, 30 Aug 2007 12:14:32 -0500

Yes, you read that correctly. Home Depot fired (former) employee Dustin Chester, who worked at a store in Murfreesboro, TN, after he apprehended a thief.

Last week, Dustin saw a man with a crowbar by a soda machine in front of the Home Depot store. He says the thief started running, and Dustin took off after him. He caught him and restrained him until the police came.

Unfortunately, Dustin was a department manager, and Home Depot’s policy prohibits managers and most employees from going after thieves. He was informed afterward by the district manager that he was supposed to let thieves go. Only loss prevention employees are allowed to go after thieves for safety reasons, says the company.

Since Dustin didn’t follow the company’s policy, he was fired. He says that he was just looking out for the other employees. He was worried about what the man might do with the crowbar and he didn’t want the customers or other employees to be in danger.

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Home Depot employee fired for apprehending thief