Men’s clothing store H.R. Lash has hatched a unique fundraiser to bring attention to the ongoing property crime in Sault Ste. Marie.
It’s selling t-shirts bearing the name of the business, along with a catchphrase: ‘F@#k around and find out!’ The shirts are a nod to the business’ own surveillance video footage showing two generations of the Lash family confronting and physically restraining a shoplifter inside the Steelton-based store back in December.
“Theft under $5,000 takes you to the police car, and then they let you walk home afterwards,” said owner Herb J. Lash, who helped his father restrain the shoplifter until police officers arrived on scene. “There’s a lot of frustration with criminals and thefts, just being able to get away with what they’re doing.”
“Not that this is going to make a big difference, but it’s to bring awareness, or at least, a little bit of a voice to everyone getting frustrated with the way that the Sault’s been turning with crime.”
A portion of the proceeds from t-shirt sales will go toward the purchase of a security camera system for another local business.
Lash wants to raise enough cash in order to buy something not unlike the 4K camera system - with two dozen cameras - that he installed and set up himself at the menswear store. Superior North Electrical and Communications has already volunteered to install the security camera system free of charge.
“Cameras are very important in being able to I.D. people, but if you have a grainy picture, you can see what happens, but you’re not going to catch anybody,” Lash said.
The business has its own policies for dealing with criminal activity, due to the instances of 'catch-and-release' within Canada's justice system enabled by Bill C-75, which brought about sweeping reforms in policing after becoming law in 2019.
“When you confront people about what they’re doing, they eventually will stop coming around,” said Lash. “We’ve seen a decrease in thefts the past couple of years because of the policies we had in place, because we don’t take well to people trying to steal from us.”
'He said he was going to kill us with the knife'
Lash’s father (and former H.R. Lash owner) Herb A. Lash was working at the store with another employee in the early evening hours of Dec. 21 when he noticed a man with most of his face obscured with a scarf, hat and hooded sweatshirt. The man was looking at Canada Goose parkas, which go for about $1,000 each.
After the man refused help from staff, Lash’s father went into the office and watched the security cameras. He then saw the man produce a duffle bag about five feet in length and stuff seven parkas into it. The shoplifter then attempted to run out the door.
“I was just hoping the police would get here before he tried to get out, but that’s not what happened - he actually put all the coats into the bag, grabbed the bag,” said Lash's father. “This guy’s got so much nerve. Can you imagine going into a store, putting out a duffle bag, loading it up?”
That’s when he locked the shoplifter inside the store.
Lash soon arrived on the scene, but at that point, his father was tussling with the shoplifter. The pair restrained the man until police arrived.
“He said he was going to kill us with his knife,” said Lash’s father. “I couldn’t believe it.”
Lash’s father now wants to have a meeting with Sault Ste. Marie MP Terry Sheehan over Bill C-75 in an effort to “get the laws changed.”
“All us normal people that are honest, working people are getting taken advantage of by these criminals. You think you can just walk into a place and do that?” he said. “No, that’s not right. We’re not doing that. Get a job like everybody else.”
Pre-orders for the ‘F@#k around and find out!’ t-shirts can be made at the H.R. Lash website.