Quote Quoting llworking
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I am viewing it a little differently. Yes, he removed it from a security post but he specifically stated that he put it in his cart.
Concealment is one possible item of evidence that can support a prosecution for theft, but it is not a required element of theft -- if you grab a hand truck and try to walk out of a store with a stack of microwave ovens, in plain sight of everyone, then change your mind, that's theft even without the slightest hint of concealment.
Quote Quoting llworking
People constantly put things in their cart and then take them back out again if they decide against the item. Now, of course I am taking him at his word.
His "word" is that he removed the item from the security mechanism by which it was attached to the display, rather than seeking help from store staff, then "got paranoid" and "ditched" the item -- that is, he has told us that he was stealing the item then got cold feet.