This Tesco manager caught a man shoplifting. What he did next was a surprise

Updated
Radzuan Ma'asan
Radzuan Ma'asan



Radzuan Ma'asan, the general manager of a branch of Tesco in Bukit Mertajam in Malaysia, caught a man stealing around £5 worth of food. However, on hearing that he was desperate to feed his three children, instead of handing him over to the authorities, Ma'asan took a very different approach - and offered him a job.

According to The Star in Malaysia, the anonymous shoplifter explained that his wife had fallen into a coma while giving birth. He had to give up his job, because he needed to care for his children, so he ran out of money.

While walking miles back home from the hospital with his two-year-old son, the Sun reported that the man had been desperate for food, so had taken it from the shelves of a branch of Tesco. The security guard had called the manager, who listened to his tragic tale.

Ma'asan was aware that the man had to fit work around caring for his three young sons, but said he would find a job for him in the store, and gave him cash to help in the meantime.

Kind-hearted help

He is not the first person to have responded with kindness when faced with someone in extreme poverty who has turned to crime as a last resort. In December last year, four stories hit the headlines, revealing the lengths people are prepared to go in order to help.

In York, South Carolina, a police officer was called to a branch of Walmart, where a man had stolen a pair of trainers. He confessed, but said his only alternatives were the flip flops he had received in jail. He arrested the man, but he also arranged to have shoes, clothes and other items brought to the police station from a local church's homeless ministry.

A police officer from Utah arrested a mum for shoplifting food, and drove her home. On realising she had no furniture in the house, no food, and no presents for her children for Christmas, the police department collected money and donations for the woman - including furniture - in a sub-for-Santa appeal.

In New Hampshire, police were called after a woman was caught stealing ingredients from her local shop. She admitted the theft, and said she had wanted to make a birthday cake for her son. Instead of arresting her, he gave the items back to the store, and then bought them and gave them to the woman. The following day he went back to check on the store owner.

Closer to home, an ex-soldier in Sheffield was caught taking food off the shelves of a Tesco store. Instead of arresting him, they gave him a roast turkey dinner, Christmas cake and a cup of tea from the store cafe, and found him some clothes. They were also inspired to do more for the homeless, and handed out food and hot drinks to people sleeping rough locally.

Driver Crashes Jaguar Into Tesco Store
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