We all dream of that thrift store lottery win. Finding a designer bag for ten bucks or a first edition book in a dollar bin is the ultimate shopping high. It is the feeling of beating the system. But one shopper on Reddit got a deal that was apparently so good it came with a side of harassment, illegal threats, and a manager who seems to have forgotten how retail works.
Our hero went to a local pawn shop just to offload some old items. While browsing, they spotted a computer for the low, low price of $89. For someone who just needs YouTube and basic browsing, that is a steal. They tested it, it worked, they paid, and they left. A valid transaction with a receipt in hand. End of story, right? Wrong.
The next day, the phone rings. It is the manager of the shop, and he is not calling to thank them for their business. He is calling to demand the computer back because, oops, they labeled it wrong. It wasn’t supposed to be $89. It was supposed to be $899. That is an $800 mistake, which is definitely painful for the shop, but the way he handled it turned a simple error into a hostage situation.
He didn’t ask nicely. He didn’t plead his case. He rudely ordered the buyer to come back immediately to return it or pay the difference. When the buyer hesitated, the manager threatened to just unauthorizedly charge their card for the $800 difference. Just for the record, that is not how credit cards work, and doing that would be actual fraud.
But the manager didn’t stop at financial threats. He decided to go full intimidation mode. He told the buyer that if they didn’t comply, he would ban them from the store and call the police for “theft.” Theft! You sold it to them. You scanned the item. You printed the receipt. That is not theft. That is a transaction you regret.
Then the manager truly lost the plot. He ended the call with a lovely parting gift, saying, “Listen, b***ch, either bring it in or go to jail, your choice.” Calling a customer a b***ch because you are bad at pricing your own inventory is certainly a choice. A bold, terrible, career-ending choice.
The buyer, quite rightly, does not think the police can do anything. The price sticker is still on the computer. They have the receipt. There is likely security footage of the purchase. The law is pretty clear here. If a store sells you an item at a listed price, the transaction is done. You cannot call the cops because you have seller’s remorse.
The buyer even had a tech-savvy friend look at the rig, confirming the parts are actually high-end and expensive. So yes, the manager made a massive, costly mistake. But his reaction was to threaten, intimidate, and use gendered slurs against a customer.
The friend thinks the buyer should take it back, likely just to make the drama go away. But honestly? If you come at me with insults and threats of jail for your own mistake, the price just went up. The tax for calling a customer a b***ch is exactly $800.
Is the buyer the ahole? Absolutely not. The manager had an opportunity to appeal to the buyer’s kindness. Instead, he chose violence. He threatened fraud and jail time. Enjoy your new computer, and maybe block that number. You bought it fair and square.