Michael Rapaport films brazen Rite Aid thief who fills a bag and saunters out on the Upper East Side

Michael Rapaport filmed the moment a brazen thief sauntered out of a Rite Aid in the Upper East side of New York City with two shopping bags full of stolen goods, calling it ‘pathetic’ that brazen crime continues to spiral in the Big Apple because of soft-on-crime policies.  

The actor and comedian, who posted footage of the incident on Instagram, told DailyMail.com that he was ‘disgusted’ and ‘surprised’ when he saw the thief stocking up on items from three different sections of the pharmacy before deciding he was satisfied. 

‘These criminals know there are no ramifications. We have to put more of these mfers in jail,’ he said.  

The Rite Aid in the video, on 81st Street and 1st Avenue, is hit with thefts of the same nature on an almost daily basis, a security guard told Rapaport. The location will be closing on February 15, along with 63 other locations to close in the coming months with thefts a major reason, the pharmacy chain announced late December. 

‘You see all these videos on Instagram of people shoplifting like they’re going for a walk in the park. ‘It’s pathetic that this is happening in the greatest city in the world,’ Rapaport said. 

Michael Rapaport caught footage of a blatant shoplifting incident on Tuesday at a Rite Aid in the Upper East Side 

Rapaport’s video, which has since garnered 117,421 views, starts with Rapaport filing the thief sauntering out of the Rite Aid, while the exasperated actor fumbles with his words before shouting, ‘I can’t believe I’m seeing this s**t!’

‘He’s walking down the street like s**t is Gucci, he looked me in the face like ‘what’s good.’ I was watching him the whole time! My man just went Christmas shopping in January.’ 

The Heat star captions the video: ‘Duke just went CHRISTMAS SHOPPING at @riteaid I’m TRIPPING this happened in broad day like it was nothing. New @iamrapaport discusses it all. I was just informed this Rite Aid is closing 2/15 because of this, leaving the workers JOBLESS. @ericadamsfornyc YO.’

He told DailyMail.com that he initially thought the thief was an employee because ‘he was just so deliberate and casual.’ 

Rapaport put the blame on ex-Mayor Bill DeBlasio, who embraced soft-on-crime policies like bail reform and police budget cuts.

However, Rapaport said that Mayor Eric Adams could right the ship. ‘I think Eric Adams knows what’s going on, he knows how to deal with crime. I’m just hoping he lives up to our expectations.’

The actor said that he relies on that Rite Aid, where he buys his mood stabilizers, and that he and many others in the community are now losing their neighborhood pharmacy – and its workers are losing their jobs – because of the rampant shoplifting.

The actor and comedian, who posted the footage on Instagram, said he was ‘disgusted’ by the brazen crime 

Rapaport said the man in his footage filled two bags with stolen goods before nonchalantly strolling past security and leaving

The Rite Aid in the video, on 81st Street and 1st Avenue, is hit with thefts of the same nature on an almost daily basis, a security guard told Rapaport

The Rite Aid in the video will be closing on February 15, with thefts a major reason, the pharmacy chain announced late December

‘These people are gonna be out of a job because of guys like this scumbum,’ he said, using the invented word as a combination of ‘scumbag’ and ‘bum.’

Rapaport said it was the first time he saw such a ‘blatant’ theft in person, but that the security guard in his video knows them all too well.

He told Rapaport that, just yesterday, two men walked in and took a six-pack of beer before acknowledging the security guard and walking out without paying anyway.

The security guard is seen in Rapaport’s video nonchalantly watching the thief walk out with his bags of looted goods. It is unclear what Rite Aid’s security policy is, but chains like Walmart have insurance over the stolen products and discourage their security guards from trying to engage with the thieves and risking injuring themselves or others.

A similar theft at a Rite Aid in New York City went viral on TikTok in October after a woman named India, who was a security guard at the store, posted footage of thefts pilfering Halloween candy before fleeing.

People asked in the comments why she isn’t stopping the thieves if she is supposed to be a security guard, to which she replied: ‘Because it’s illegal to touch, grab or use any physical force to stop them.’ Instead, she said, her job is to ‘observe and report.’

Robbery in New York City has spiked by about 33% in the week ending on January 23, the NYPD’s most recent data, with 944 incidents as compared to the 709 incidents reported in same duration last year

A similar theft at a Rite Aid in New York City went viral on TikTok in October after a woman named India, who was a security guard at the store, posted footage of thefts pilfering Halloween candy before fleeing 

People asked in the comments why she isn’t stopping the thieves if she is supposed to be a security guard, to which she replied: ‘Because it’s illegal to touch, grab or use any physical force to stop them.’ Instead, she said, her job is to ‘observe and report’ 

Asked what he thinks needs to be done to curb the spike in shoplifting incidents, Rapaport said that there need to be ‘more ramifications’ and penalties for shoplifting. ‘Criminals know they could get away with it. This whole thing is just a mess,’ he said.

Robbery in New York City has spiked by about 33% in the week ending on January 23, the NYPD’s most recent data, with 944 incidents as compared to the 709 incidents reported in same duration last year.

Overall crime has gone up by nearly 39%, with 7,230 incidents this year as compared to last year’s 5,211. 

Meanwhile, in the latest shocking episode of New York City crime, a gunman opened fire in a Bronx hospital waiting room on Tuesday afternoon – shooting another man four times before fleeing.

The unidentified suspect was waiting to be seen by nurses when he ‘exchanged looks’ with another man in the waiting room at Jacobi Hospital.

Harrowing video of the shooting shows the gunman standing to look at the victim then opening fire without warning, right in front of the reception desk.

He then fled, leaving the victim standing in disbelief while blood spurted from his arm.

It is unclear if it was a random shooting or if the pair knew each other. A little girl was sitting next to the man who was struck; her mother shielded her throughout the incident.

The gunman remains armed and at large. The NYPD has not offered any kind of description for him.

In the latest shocking episode of New York City crime, a gunman opened fire in a Bronx hospital waiting room on Tuesday afternoon – shooting another man four times before fleeing 

The gunman started to flee, clutching his gun, while stunned onlookers watched. A mother who was with her child in the corner shielded the girl as the incident unfolded

The victim survived and was treated at the scene for a gunshot wound to the arm. It’s unclear if anyone else was harmed.

On Monday, a day before the hospital shooting, Adams vowed a crackdown on gun violence, claiming he would protect New Yorkers from the ‘sea of violence’ currently plaguing the city.

‘I won’t let that happen,’ he vowed.

Police unions and residents say it’s already too late. They are however embracing Adams, who has promised to be tougher than his predecessor.

Yesterday, Pat Lynch, the head of the NYC Police Benevolent Association, the largest police union, also lauded Adams and said they would embrace having an ‘ally’ in City Hall.

‘For years, we’ve been calling for real solutions to our violent crime crisis. Mayor Adams has acknowledged the problem and outlined the beginnings of a plan.

‘The message on the streets is that there are no consequences for carrying and using illegal guns… it has to change immediately because we’ve already lost more than we can bear.’

Tuesday’s shooting in the Bronx was within hours of a fourth cop dying from gunshot wounds inflicted in the line of duty.

Wilbert Mora, 27, (right) died on Tuesday – four days after the attack. His partner Jason Rivera, 22 (left) was killed in the shooting

NYPD officer Wilbert Mora died on Tuesday morning, four days after he was critically injured in an ambush attack that also killed his rookie partner.

The 27-year-old had been hospitalized since being gunned down along with his 22-year-old partner Jason Rivera in Harlem on Friday while responding to a domestic violence call. They are the first two officers to be killed by gunfire in the city since 2017.

Mora needed two surgeries after he was shot in the head and a bullet became lodged in his brain, but he could not be saved. He died at NYU Langone Hospital on Tuesday afternoon after being taken off life support.

He was placed on life support so that his organs could be harvested for donation, according to the New York Post.

‘Some lucky person got a hero’s heart today,’ a cop told the newspaper.

Mora was a four-year veteran of the department after he graduated from CUNY John Jay College for Criminal Justice in 2018.

Career criminal Lashawn McNeil, 47, who was out on probation and carried out the attack, was shot in the head and arm by a third officer responding to the call, Sumit Sulan. McNeil, who had shared anti-cop propaganda and anti-government conspiracy posts on Facebook, died from his injuries on Monday.