Dollar Tree

I would like to file a formal complaint against the Dollar Tree employee by the name of Miguel in regards to an in-store incident that occurred at the 350 Junius Street location in Brooklyn, NY (Store #7254), on October 29, 2019, at approximately 1:41 p.m.

I initially entered the store at approximately 12:30 p.m. in order to purchase Halloween candy and to browse the store for any other purchases I might want. After selecting various bags of candy and picking up a few items, I realized that I would probably get a better deal on buying bulk candy at the Family Dollar around the corner on 455 Dumont Avenue (Store #06960). I returned all of the items I had previously selected back to their display areas and left for Family Dollar.

I arrived at Family Dollar at approximately 1:00 p.m. and ended up purchasing 4 bulk bags of Halloween candy there for $5.00 a bag and a Halloween bucket (see attached receipt). I then continued to Food Bazaar, which is located on the same corner at 417 Junius Street to do some food shopping (see attached receipt), and left that store at approximately 1:30 p.m.

I then returned to the Dollar Tree to purchase items I wasn't able to find at the two previous stores for. I reentered Dollar Tree at approximately 1:35 p.m., and because I knew exactly what I wanted from browsing earlier, I quickly selected and put into the shopping basket: a package of brown paper bags (for my students to carry the candy I just purchased), 2 baby bottle brushes, and a can of Ajax. I went directly to the register after picking up these items and was cashed out at 1:41 p.m (see attached receipt).

While I was at the register and paying for my items, an employee named Miguel aggressively approached me claiming that he witnessed me shoplifting and attempted to intimidate me into opening my personal bag as evidence of theft. My bag was zipped closed the entire time I was in the store and was carried on my back, containing only the items I purchased at the previous stores.

I declined and exited the store, and he followed me outside the store and up the block while calling the police with a description of me and repeatedly accusing me of stealing from the store. I went home and immediately tried to contact the Corporate Headquarters to file a complaint. I also called the store to get the name of the Store Manager and also register my complaint directly with the store. The employee answering the phone refused to give me the name of the Store Manager or their name. I was able to recall Miguel's first name due to his nametag.

I would like to make it clear that I am not used to, do not appreciate, and do not deserve to be accused of being a thief, and it is especially disturbing because it is a store that I patronize regularly. I would never jeopardize my career or personal well-being by risking being jailed for stealing items, and especially not from a store where everything cost $1! I am extremely insulted by the harassment I endured by your employee Miguel.

It is personally frustrating to me and unfortunate that I no longer feel safe or comfortable shopping at this particular location which is closest to me. I wonder how this corporation plans to address this issue.

I would appreciate if a representative of your corporation would contact me directly so that I may provide further detail on my in-store experience, that could not be fully expressed within this letter.