Thieves steal €1,000 in deposit bottles and cans from Jumbo in Cuijk
Two men stole six large bags filled with empty bottles and cans from the loading area of a Jumbo supermarket in Cuijk on Friday evening, possibly costing the store owner up to 1,000 euros in missed deposit refunds. Security footage shows the suspects calmly removing the bags over three separate trips without raising alarm from staff or bystanders, RTL reports.
Store owner Joppe Bosmans told RTL the theft happened after 7 p.m., when he was out jogging and unreachable by phone. A friend had noticed suspicious activity and tried to alert him. “It was after seven, and my workday was already over. I didn’t have my phone with me, so I only saw it when I got home,” Bosmans said. “Yes, that was quite annoying.”
Surveillance footage from the supermarket reportedly shows the first theft occurring at 19:03, when the suspects took two large plastic bags from the loading area. They returned twice more at roughly 15-minute intervals, removing more bags each time. “The plastic bags are so big, they can’t all fit in a car at once,” Bosmans told RTL.
Despite multiple people being nearby, no one intervened. “We see on the footage that there are people in the area. You hope someone would say something,” Bosmans told the newspaper. The store does not employ security, as incidents are rare. “It’s a quiet store. Normally nothing happens here,” he added. Because the license plate on the suspects’ vehicle is not clearly visible—only that it appears to be foreign, possibly Bulgarian—police told him they are unable to act.
Bosmans shared the footage online, which prompted questions about why such a large quantity of refundable bottles and cans was stored outside. “We have a small storage area. It often doesn’t fit,” he explained. “So we place it outside, but we always enclose it with crates and containers so it’s not really visible.” Still, he said he sees little way to change the setup. “If I can, of course I’d rather keep it inside. But that won’t always be possible. If they come back, I’ll make sure I catch them.”
