INDEPENDENCE, Mo. — Most people head to the gym to get fit, but you also want to be safe. Independence Police say they’ve seen eight wallets stolen out of lockers in the past few months.
Tuan Tran has been working out at Planet Fitness for the past six years, and always felt secure.
“I never had any problems before. It never crossed my mind that anything would happen. I thought it was a very safe place,” Tran said.
On Saturday, Tran worked out at the Route 291 location. When he was done, he noticed the lock on his locker was different.
“It still had the new sticker on the back of it. So, I went to the employee and he cut the lock for me,” Tran said.
Inside of the locker, his bag was rummaged through, his wallet and AirPods case were gone,
“I was able to get my bank shut off, but I noticed on my credit card they were able to charge about $3,000 worth of charges,” Tran said.
The thieves spent $882 at Sam’s Club, $1,500 at Walmart, $1,057 at Guitar Center, and $253 at QT.
Officer John Syme with Independence Police says the Rt. 291 location was hit five times since July, and the location off 40 Highway was hit three times. In all eight cases a wallet was stolen.
“I think the locks give a false sense of security,” Syme said. “We definitely recommend you don’t bring any valuables with you. Obviously, you need to take your car keys, you need to take your wallet, and your cellphone. But if you can keep those on your person that’s the best thing that’s going to prevent a theft.”
“Be more aware of their surroundings now, and things like this are going on, and just to be more cautious,” Tran said.
Tran was able to get his money back through his bank’s fraud protection plan.
Officer Syme says many times they can catch thieves by using the cameras at the stores where the cards are used.
In November, FOX4 reported on a similar incident at the Planet Fitness in Shawnee.
Planet Fitness released the following statement Wednesday evening.
“At Planet Fitness, the safety of our members and team members is our top priority. We are aware of the incidents at our Independence locations and are actively working with police. We defer any additional questions to the local authorities.”
