A viral TikTok clip allegedly shows an elderly woman attempting to leave a Louisiana Market Basket store without paying for her groceries, while a store employee appears to confront her and try to stop her from exiting.
The video appears to have been filmed by a witness inside the store and reportedly takes place on Ryan Street in Lake Charles, Louisiana. The employee can be seen blocking the elderly woman’s trolley as she attempts to leave, resulting in contact between the trolley and the employee.
In the clip, the elderly woman can be heard saying, “Move out my way. Let me get my stuff.” As the situation escalates, a store employee responds while attempting to stop her, saying, “Take your purse. Ma’am, ma’am. No, no. I’ll take this bag right here. I just saw it on the camera.” The employee says he observed the woman taking items while reviewing surveillance footage.
However, the woman continues to push against the employee and is heard saying, “Move out my way.” The confrontation continues, with the woman appearing to push the worker. The employee then begins calling the police on his phone, while another shopper attempts to intervene. The worker instructs him to “Let her go,” and says that he is going to watch her vehicle.
As tensions continue, the employee exclaims, “You put your hands on me.” The woman responds, “because you wouldn’t get out of my god damn way.” The employee can then be heard stating, “Because you were stealing.” The woman then leaves the premises, with it unclear from the footage whether police were called before the clip ends.
Viewers React to the Circulating Footage
The video clip has sparked a range of reactions online. On TikTok, one sympathetic user commented on the situation, writing, “This sad. This is someone’s granny.”
Other viewers expressed a more critical stance toward the incident, with one netizen writing, “It’s my stuff!! I put it in my purse so it’s mine!!”
Among the wider discussion, another user added a more personal remark, stating, “I am black and I am very fatigued.”
A further commenter reacted to the footage, writing, “Never seen this before 🤦♂️,” accompanied by a facepalm emoji.
The clip ends without clarifying whether police were called to the scene.
