Falsely Accused, Threatened, and Thrown Out – All While Protecting My Infant

To whom it may concern,

My name is Duncan Bentley (contact: ***) and I am writing to formally lodge a serious complaint regarding an incident that occurred at Pick n Pay Summerstrand Boardwalk Mall while I was shopping with my 5-month-old daughter.

After doing our regular grocery shopping and paying for all our items, I was suddenly stopped at the exit by security. They accused me of not paying for a fan heater, which was both shocking and humiliating. I had my infant strapped to my chest, and we were treated like ********s in front of other customers.

Upon reviewing the situation, it became clear that the cashier had failed to scan the heater, likely due to struggling to see the screen properly she was noticeably squinting. I calmly returned to the till and, out of concern, told her I believed she might need glasses.

While I was trying to resolve the matter, a random male shopper confronted me aggressively, face-to-face, despite the fact that I had a baby strapped to me. Fearing for our safety, I defended myself and struck him to create distance.

Instead of supporting the parent under threat, I was shocked when your male manager instructed security to physically remove me from the store with my baby still strapped to my body. Meanwhile, the man who escalated the conflict was allowed to continue shopping unbothered.

I find this situation completely unacceptable. At no point did your staff intervene to ensure the safety of a parent and infant. Instead, I was:

Publicly humiliated,

Physically ejected while holding a newborn,

Made to feel like a ******** over an honest scanning error,

And threatened without any support from your team.

This was a massive failure in basic customer service, safety, and common decency. I am requesting:

A formal apology from Pick n Pay,

An internal review of the incident,

Disciplinary action against the staff involved, especially the male manager who authorized the removal.

I also ask that security footage of the incident be reviewed and preserved.

This experience was deeply traumatic, and I will be escalating this to all necessary public platforms if not properly addressed.

Sincerely, Duncan Bentley ***