Who is Santino Burrola? Wiki, Biography, Age, Supermarket employee fired

Santino Burrola Wiki – Santino Burrola Biography

Santino Burrola, the King Soopers employee, was alerted to a robbery in progress at the store and the first thing he thought to do was take out his phone and record it. A Colorado supermarket clerk has been fired after he videotaped three men stealing about $500 worth of laundry detergent from the store on Father’s Day.

“When I looked, there was already a guy halfway there with a food cart full of laundry detergents, scent enhancers and whatnot,” Burrola told CBS Colorado. “My first instinct, record.”

As Burrola, a former military police officer, was leaving the store, the three robbers scrambled to load a black Chevy Trax, one opening the doors, another tossing a basket full of items into the back seat, and another struggling to unload the cart. full shopping.

Supermarket employee fired

“Really, brother, do you have to resort to this? The economy isn’t too bad,” Burrola could be heard in the now-viral video shared by the Arapahoe Sheriff’s Office. “It’s better to keep going while I’m well,” Burrola joked to the men.

When the three puppets tried to flee the parking lot, the getaway driver was slightly faster than the two still outside the car, who both had trouble getting into the vehicle. That allowed Burrola to pull a sheet of aluminum foil covering the license plate.

After the men got into the car and left the area, Burrola called police and later shared the video on social media, which helped investigators. “So I posted it on TikTok, hoping someone would recognize them,” Burrola said of the video that was viewed 1.5 million times, including by rapper Snoop Dogg.

When Burrola returned to the store for his next shift, he learned that he had been suspended and a week later he was fired. “The union rep and I sat down with them and they recommended firing,” Burrola said. “I would never let any criminal conduct go, especially when it happens right in front of me.”

Burrola said that he did not break any rules or touch the thieves; all he was doing was trying to help the community.

“Did I feel that I crossed the limits? Not really because I didn’t physically touch them or tamper with their shoplifting in any way, I just released the badge to help the community to be aware, the police to be aware and help catch them better,” Burrola said. to 9News.

“Investigators have already identified and arrested the driver, Jorge Pantoja, 32, the man in the green shirt,” the Arapahoe Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. Pantoja is currently in custody at the Adams County Detention Center on unrelated felony charges. He has also been charged with theft/shoplifting, a class 2 misdemeanor”.

Police are still searching for the two passengers after the driver was arrested for an unrelated felony and was also charged with misdemeanor theft. During their investigation, police contacted the vehicle’s registered owner, who lent the car to a friend, and the driver was later found.

“The driver was then contacted, arrested, and said he picked up two other men at the light rail station at I-25 and Belleview and offered them a chance to earn some money. The men told the driver their names were Robert and Bugsy.

The other two thieves are still on the run. The supermarket chain around the Rocky Mountains is a subsidy of the Kroger Company, which Burrola says has a policy against employees chasing down shoplifters or engaging in robbery.

“We are disappointed by the increased level of crime in retail establishments and the impact these incidents have on our associates and customers. We remain committed to working in partnership with local law enforcement to address this issue as safety remains a top priority,” King Soopers said in a statement to CBS Colorado.

“We have security measures in place to help prevent crime and reduce such confrontations to minimize risk to our associates. While we cannot comment on personnel matters, we value our associated workers and their safe return home,” the statement concluded.

Following his firing from the store, Burrola posted a follow-up video on TikTok where she held an impromptu press conference to ask and answer his own questions. “I was limited in my abilities by the fact that I was employed there,” Burrola responded on why he didn’t “fool” the thieves.

Burrola said he received “racist comments” in the video, but said: “I didn’t see color when I confronted them, I’ve seen criminals, white, black, brown, purple, it didn’t matter, a crime was being committed.” committed and what is bad is bad and a crime is a crime”.

“Let me tell you something, if something is happening in front of me, I’ll make it my business,” Burrola concluded. Burrola’s family created a GoFundMe for the fired worker to recover lost wages

“He was not given severance pay and he was planning to move to Florida to be closer to family. This loss of position has put a damper on plans and set him back on a couple of bills,” GoFundMe states.

King Soopers’ decision to fire Burrola left many outraged on the GoFundMe page, where some even praised Burrola for his quick thinking. “Sorry to read that you got fired filming these losers thinking they could break in and steal. Good for you though,” one comment read.

“It is completely absurd that this dedicated employee, who was clearly doing his job by trying to protect the merchandise in his stores and assisting the police in arresting these shoplifters, was fired due to the insane regulations these corporations have created regarding the retail theft,” another commenter. aggregate.

“I can understand the ‘no physical involvement’ rule to prevent harm to employees or innocent bystanders, but the action this employee took was to help the business, the community, and the police. He did not deserve to be fired in any way.”

In May, two Georgia Lululemon employees were fired after police were called by three masked men who returned to the Atlanta store after robbing the location several times before. during a robbery,” Lululemon CEO Calvin McDonald said after the two employees were fired.