Brace Yo'self
My friend was one of the more nefarious types in my little gang of chums when I was at college.

He was a bit of clothes freak, and any opportunity to lift the latest wares would be taken with relish.

It was around this time that his little brother had a set of braces fitted on his teeth. On a family shopping trip to 'Meadowhell', our hero discovered that in some shops, the braces would cross the shop's sensors and set off the alarm for the shop security to collar the apparent thieving bastards.

My friend was not an A-grade student for nothing - and being very observant and logical, he realised that his freshly metalled-up sibling would be the perfect distraction for him to play out his favourite hobby.

It was simple, little bro would wait outside on look out, when the lift was made and the signal given, little bro would walk into the shop 'looking for his mum', set the sensor off, and older bro would walk straight through as the alarm wailed, without suspicion, whilst the alarm kept the shop staff occupied.

After a bit of testing and research into the susceptible shops, big bro was ready to execute his plan.

Despite having more gaps in the concept than the Sheffield Wednesday defence, the pair were amazingly successful and all of a sudden me and my college chums were adorned with plenty of the latest fashions - mostly jeans and t-shirts, but he managed to swipe the odd set of trainers and even a games console in his time.

To ensure little bro kept his gob shut, he always got 10% of the takings, which kept him in gobstoppers and Space Raiders for many, many months to come.

Apparently his mum and dad were happy for big bro to take little bro out on trips during the weekend, they took pride in the seeming improvement in brotherly relations and big bro's responsible attitude.

Now, you should never look a gift horse in the mouth as they say, and this was my chum's downfall.

After a six-month pillage of various department stores in the area, Sheffield's answer to Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid were caught in - of all places - Netto.

They'd executed the manoveure as usual, this time to swipe some sweets and pop. However, big bro had been seen by the burly security jobsworth and the doors didn't have any sensors to catch such thieving little so-and-sos - thus the cover was blown.

Apparently, little bro wet himself on the spot, big bro was in tears, and eventually found himself kicked out of college. All for a packet of skittles and a can of coke.

So, there a lesson there kids - it might be cheap, it might be nasty, but... NETTO KNOWS.

Still, the Levis were nice. Bit tight on the thigh, though.
(scentless_apprentice takes two bottles into the shower!, Sat 12 Jan 2008, 12:36, 6 replies)

Yes!
Superb story and the first time I've been moved to comment on a QOTW. Good stuff.
(The loquacious linguist, Sat 12 Jan 2008, 12:48, closed)

...
If braces set off security alarms, so would keys and any metal purchase.

They don't have metal detectors at shops. Airports, yes, but not shops.
(clumsyeloquence is a girl, Sun 13 Jan 2008, 15:12, closed)

...
Forgive me for being blunt, but did I actually say anything about metal detection???
(scentless_apprentice takes two bottles into the shower!, Sun 13 Jan 2008, 19:28, closed)

@ clumsyeloquence
It's perfectly plausible. One of my car keys used to set off several shop doorway security sensors. Those in Blockbuster especially. (Why on earth would they have sensors on the 'in' door, anyway?)
(Greencloud Wanted to go fishing on, Mon 14 Jan 2008, 9:01, closed)

Sorry, don't buy it
Looked it up on several websites, which all said it wasn't possible for braces to set off shop alarms.
(clumsyeloquence is a girl, Mon 14 Jan 2008, 13:46, closed)

"Why on earth would they have sensors on the 'in' door, anyway?"
Because naughty shoplifters might go out through the in door.
(Musuko, Tue 15 Jan 2008, 15:45, closed)