A British supermarket worker was fired for tackling a prolific Champagne thief on the same day he rescued the store’s security guard, who was suffering a stroke.
Gary MacArthur, who worked for Sainsbury’s – one of the UK’s “Big Four” supermarket chains – in southeast London for the past 15 years, was dismissed over a December 2025 incident where he restrained an aggressive shoplifter, LBC reported Thursday.
MacArthur, 34, wasn’t meant to be on duty when the ordeal happened. He worked an extra hour to help his female co-workers after the West Wickham store’s security guard fell ill.
“My security guard started at 1 p.m. and he didn’t seem right in himself – he looked lighter in his color,” he told LBC.
“Around 2:30 p.m., he had a stroke on the shop floor. Me and another colleague were the first at his scene, did a bit of CPR and called the ambulance… he was rushed to hospital.”
Commotion erupted inside the supermarket just as MacArthur was meant to clock off.
“I finish up at 9 p.m., [and] as I go to take my headpiece off, I’ve got all the girls screaming in my ear going ‘come down, we’ve got an aggressive Champagne thief,” he said.
MacArthur ushered out the thief, who had a track record of stealing bottles of Moët and Bollinger, before finding a bag stuffed with stolen items in a bush — but the shoplifter returned.
The suspect hurled bottles at supermarket staffers, including the manager, before another customer stopped the thief from leaving and MacArthur restrained him until cops arrived.
Despite bravely interjecting, MacArthur was fired for gross misconduct in March and lost his appeal the following month.
Supermarket bosses said he should’ve acted as a “visual deterrent,” according to the letter seen by LBC.
MacArthur had previously been warned about his response to an August 2025 incident where someone tried to steal supermarket products.
He also revealed he had lost teeth after being assaulted by another suspected shoplifter.
Despite coming under attack, MacArthur admitted he “can’t let it go” when he spots criminal behavior.
“It’s not even thieving these days – it’s pure looting,” he said.
Meanwhile, a Sainsbury’s spokesperson said, “We are seeing incidents of violence, aggression and theft happening in our stores on a daily basis, threatening the safety of colleagues and customers.
“We are responding by investing in extra security measures, ensuring addressing this issue remains a Government priority and sharing intelligence with police forces around the country, not asking our colleagues to put their safety on the line by tackling offenders.”
MacArthur is just one store worker who has been fired for tackling shoplifters.
Walker Smith was fired from his job at the upmarket supermarket chain Waitrose last month for tackling a shoplifter who tried to walk out with a bag of Easter candy.
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