Spam locked up in Hawaii to combat black market thieves

bcla

On our rugged Eastern foothills.....
Joined
Nov 28, 2012
I knew that Spam was popular in Hawaii, but this seems just crazy.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...-wildly-popular-mystery-meat-in-locked-cases/

The thefts have proliferated to the point that some businesses are putting Spam in plastic cases under lock and key, she said, along with the more conventional and more expensive shoplifting targets such as electronics, Gillette Power Fusion razor refills and, as it happens, canned corned beef, also popular in Hawaii.​

I've heard of baby formula theft where the formula is kept either locked up or in special shelves with sliding panels that make it difficult to remove more than one at a time. I've bought some in a pinch (and they're kind of pricey) at Walgreens, and remember they had hard to remove labels that said that they were only for sale at Walgreens.

They're also pretty bold:

http://www.staradvertiser.com/2017/...lice-seek-2-in-connection-with-theft-of-spam/

The two males entered a Fort Street Mall store at about 11:45 a.m. Oct. 3, and one of them selected a case of Spam, concealed it, then left the store without paying, police said.

A security guard tried to stop the suspect, but was punched by someone before both suspects fled. Police said the second male did not assist the man who took the case of Spam during the struggle with security.
 
Jeez I'd think if you were risking a jail sentence you'd do for something worth more than Spam....
 
Jeez I'd think if you were risking a jail sentence you'd do for something worth more than Spam....

The article mentions that the cutoff for felony theft has gone up to $750, so I guess a lot of people are thinking about the possibility of a felony charge and going under that just in case they get caught.
 
Spam is readily available and cheap. I guess I don't see why theirs even a black market for it. What's next, Salt?
 


Jeez I'd think if you were risking a jail sentence you'd do for something worth more than Spam....

Unfortunately there is a side of Hawaii you don't see. Some people are drugged up, and desperate to get cash to feed their habit. And the same reason they eat a lot of it is the same thing that makes it ideal to steal. You don't need refrigeration to store it. Spam is pretty much what they had other than fish during the war. And today, because it's popular, they can steal it, sell it at a cut rate, and get money to feed their drug habit. And well stealing spam doesn't get you 5 to 10 like robbing someone would.

Spam is still very popular in Hawaii. And whereas here you might see 3-4 varieties on the shelf, there you can see 7-10 or so. But you never just see them eat spam out of a can. They always do something to it. Fried Spam. They make a Korean stew with it. (spam is also popular in south Korea) They make what I call Spam sushi. We laugh but it's actually quite tasty. Fried Spam N Eggs.
By the way spam is a very good product to take into the back country with you. It's not suggested for every day couch potatoes. But when you're back packing in high country, it packs just the right nutritional punch. Comes in handy too if you get stranded.

Spam is readily available and cheap. I guess I don't see why theirs even a black market for it. What's next, Salt?
Spam sells for about $2.50 there. So if someone can steal several cases and then sell it for a buck a can, well there you go.
 
Spam is readily available and cheap. I guess I don't see why theirs even a black market for it. What's next, Salt?

It's extremely popular and easy to unload. Also pretty hard to trace since there are no serial numbers. I know they have production codes, but those aren't exactly serial numbers. Someone mentioned people buying drugs, and they usually think of how easy it will be to unload and what kind of effort will be made to track them down.
 
WTH....I thought this was a joke when I first started reading the article :sad2:
 


There's nothing so cheap that somebody, somewhere, won't shoplift it.

Kleptos take small things just because. However, these thefts seem to be far more organized. I get that it takes a lot of cans of Spam, but I guess this is enough money and generally little risk for something that can net something that's easy to fence in Hawaii.
 

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