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Man charged after 53 right-sided boots disappear from Brisbane shop

A man has been charged over the bizarre alleged theft of 53 boots from a shop in Brisbane’s inner west earlier this month. WATCH THE VIDEO

A man accused of stealing more than 50 shoes from a store in Brisbane’s west in early July has been charged.

Police will allege the man entered Shoe Fashions Kenmore about 7.30pm on July 7 and took 53 shoes from the store. In a twist, all of them were for right feet only.

A 49-year-old Mount Gravatt East man was arrested at Broadbeach on Thursday. He has been charged with one count of enter premises and commit indictable offence and was expected to appear in Southport Magistrates Court today.

The shoes all came from a sale table containing only right shoes. Left shoes were stored at the back of the shop.

Detective Senior Sergeant Brendan Blyth said CCTV footage and assistance from the public helped track down the allegedly stolen items.

“It’s not every day you come across a case involving the theft of 53 right shoes. While the incident may be a bit unique and different in nature, it’s a reminder that our officers take all reports seriously,” he said.

All 53 shoes were accounted for and returned to the store.

Tamara Shorrock is the owner and operator of Shoe Fashions Kenmore. Picture: Liam Kidston
Tamara Shorrock is the owner and operator of Shoe Fashions Kenmore. Picture: Liam Kidston

Shoe Fashions Kenmore Owner Tamara Shorrock said if the shoes on the table were sold at full price they would have been priced at $14,000, but with the sale it was $7000 worth of shoes.

“Someone had taken all our sale boots off the sale table. So there were 53 right footed boots, and they took every single one of them,” Ms Shorrock said.

“It was covered up at the time as well. So we covered it up overnight. And look, we’ve been doing it for 29 years, and not one boot or shoe has been stolen over the years.

“So that’s sort of why we leave the table where it is. It’s never been an issue.

“I came into work on Tuesday to discover that they were all gone.”

Speaking at the time of the alleged theft, Ms Shorrock said store staff would now bring the shoes inside the shop every night.

“It’s just never really occurred to us that someone would actually want to steal a right boot,” she said.

“It’s very bizarre. We’re still scratching our heads over that one.

“Clearly they are not pairs, it’s pretty obvious that they’re all right feet, but maybe he was in a rush and just thought, okay, I’ll grab them.

“Or maybe he has friends that only require the right shoe.”

Originally published as Man charged after 53 right-sided boots disappear from Brisbane shop

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Original URL: https://www.themercury.com.au/news/queensland/bumbling-thief-steals-53-right-boots-from-brisbane-shoe-store/news-story/e89b57122310ed3a457027b618763ac3