00:00Two teenagers and their mom say that a misunderstanding led to trauma at a metro area Walmart.
00:07They caught some of this on camera.
00:09Fox Force Bella Karakta talked to that family and to police about what happened and what's next.
00:14This sophomore in high school ended up on the ground in handcuffs at a Walmart at I-35 and 152
00:21Highway near Liberty, Missouri.
00:22The family says it was all a misunderstanding.
00:26Jeremiah, stop. Come on down.
00:29Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh, record. I am.
00:33A trip for snacks turned into a day the Wachruba family won't forget.
00:38Never know what was going through their mind.
00:40That's 16-year-old Jeremiah Wachruba.
00:42I know I paid for everything, so like I was trying to stay as calm as I can.
00:46Leading up to the video you just saw, the store's asset protection department alerted an off-duty Kansas City police
00:52officer working store security at the exit
00:55that the boys failed to scan all their items at self-checkout.
00:58As the family walked out, the officer pulled 17-year-old Isaiah back.
01:02Falsely accused. Three, not one, not two people, but three people.
01:06Then the family started recording.
01:08They said you guys stole, you guys stole.
01:09While Jeremiah is detained, the group tries to figure out what's going on.
01:13I literally watched him scan everything.
01:15I have a receipt.
01:16The asset protection employee tells them what she says she saw.
01:19Look, look at the receipt. Look at the receipt.
01:21The recording stops.
01:22Police take the teenagers outside and handcuff them.
01:25Their mom, Viquandra, goes inside to sort it out.
01:28I feel like they had already immediately criminalized them because they never once asked questions.
01:39Kansas City, Missouri, police say several of its officers responded to a shoplifting call.
01:43Walmart Asset Protection reviewed video and cross-referenced the family's receipts with the items.
01:49They were uncuffed and let go.
01:52And at that point, I was just so angry.
01:54I said, you know what?
01:55I said, take all of this stuff.
01:57I used choice words.
01:59All of this s***.
02:01Take it back.
02:02Return it all.
02:03KCPD reported the family did have unpaid items in the shopping cart,
02:07some peppermint sticks and a gallon of sweet tea worth $5 total.
02:13The family said it was a simple mistake, not an orchestrated theft.
02:17Police acknowledged they handcuffed some people involved, they say, for resisting officers.
02:22These are kids.
02:23These are kids.
02:25They did not resist anything because they were not aware of anything.
02:29Walmart is not pressing charges, and the police let the teens go.
02:33Working for you, Fox 4 asked Walmart for a response, and the company shared this statement.
02:38We are aware of discrepancies that involved multiple transactions, and the matter was resolved at the store.
02:44From asset protection to police, the family wishes this didn't end up with two teenagers in handcuffs.
02:51It is something I'm going to remember forever.
02:54The family tells me they explained the few unpaid items in the cart to employees.
02:59They say it was confusion thinking another family member paid for it before tossing it into the cart,
03:04and they say they would have happily showed the receipt and paid the difference rather than be put into handcuffs.
03:10Walmart also in contact with the family through email, corporate apologizing to them and said given the seriousness of their
03:17concerns about how this was handled,
03:19corporate escalated it to the ethics team and store management.
03:24I'm Bella Karakta, Fox 4, working for you.
