NORTH MIAMI BEACH, Fla. — A five-finger discount was caught on camera last week as a tip jar was stolen in North Miami Beach.
Surveillance video captured a man grabbing the jar and taking off with what was inside.
The theft occurred Friday at The Squeeze Juice Bar off Biscayne Boulevard, near Northeast 163rd Street.
The business then posted video of the incident on its Instagram page in hopes that someone would recognize the thief.
The video shows the man, who was wearing a white shirt and grey sweatpants, sitting down at a table.
But as soon as the workers left the front register and went to the back, the man got up from his table and walked over to the tip jar.
Right after grabbing it, the man walked away, leaving the juice bar with all the tip money.
“When we came in, the next cashier was like, ‘Where’s the tip jar?’ And that’s when I looked over the cameras and I realized somebody took it,” business owner Louis Alexis said.
The business says there was well over $80 inside the tip jar at the time.
“He took this from somebody who is working two jobs to be able to support herself,” Alexis said. “You know, it’s really, really disheartening.”
In their post, the business said, “We’re already in one of the hardest times the restaurant business has ever faced … Rising costs, inflation and businesses barely surviving. Our staff shows up everyday working long hours, so when someone has the nerve to steal tips from our staff, it cuts deep. Those tips aren’t extra, they’re survival.”
They go on to say that “if you can’t tip that’s fine, but stealing from the very people breaking their backs to serve you, it’s not right.”
Alexis said the employee who would have benefitted from the tip money that day had just worked a double shift.
“She should’ve been able to get her tips, but we were pretty upset and disheartened,” he said.
Alexis confirmed that all of the tip money would have gone straight to his staff.
“I mean, right now, things are very, very tight,” he said. “The restaurant industry is pretty sour right now -- nobody’s going out to eat, everyone’s budget is really tight. Even for us as business owners, we go without to be able to pay our cashiers, our servers, our kitchen staff. So every penny literally counts.”
Alexis said he’s sharing the video publicly in hopes that the man in the video will do the right thing and bring the money back.
“We just put it out there just for awareness ... We just leave it in God’s hands, I guess,” he said.
If you think you recognize the thief, call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-8477.
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