Santas and elves rob Montreal grocery store to ‘give food to the needy’ | Canada

Wearing purple fits and backed by masked elves, a bunch of Santas marched right into a Montreal grocery store, loaded their luggage with hundreds of {dollars} price of groceries and disappeared into the evening.The bandit Santas later launched a press release saying the meals can be distributed to the needy, and saying the Robin Hood-style stunt was supposed to spotlight the spiralling price of dwelling disaster that has pushed primary requirements more and more out of attain for strange Canadians.Roughly 40 members of a bunch known as known as Robins des Ruelles – Robins of the Alleys – participated within the theft late on Monday.The assertion, launched late on Thursday, and entitled “When starvation justifies the means”, mentioned: “We’re working increasingly simply to have the ability to purchase meals from grocery store chains that benefit from inflation as a pretext to make report earnings.Enable Instagram content material?This text contains content material supplied by Instagram. We ask in your permission earlier than something is loaded, as they might be utilizing cookies and different applied sciences. To view this content material, click on ‘Enable and proceed’.“There isn’t a different option to put it: a handful of corporations are holding our primary wants hostage.”The group mentioned the businesses “proceed to suffocate the inhabitants to siphon away as a lot cash as doable”.Metro, which owns eight main grocery manufacturers in Ontario and Quebec, mentioned in a press release that shoplifting was a legal act and unacceptable. A spokesperson, Geneviève Grégoir, mentioned worth will increase have been influenced by elements embrace disruptions within the world provide chain, volatility in commodity costs, modifications in worldwide commerce circumstances – and retail crime.In keeping with the Retail Council of Canada, retail crime is on the rise and accounted for greater than $9bn in misplaced gross sales in 2024.“It must be famous that as a retailer, we’re the ultimate cease within the provide chain,” Grégoire mentioned. “The costs on retailer cabinets straight replicate the prices of the availability chain.” Grégoire additionally famous that Metro in 2025 donated $1.15m and supplied greater than $81m in meals merchandise to meals banks.Three corporations management the overwhelming majority of Canada’s grocery shops and have loved report earnings lately. Regardless of authorities concern over profiteering, whereas the earnings are near-record ranges, the businesses say their revenue margins are shrinking.Police informed reporters they have been investigating the theft, however no arrests had been made.The Robins deposited some groceries in a public sq. on the foot of a Christmas tree on Tuesday night, including that the remaining can be distributed by means of group meals banks.“Don’t overlook – the starvation justifies the means,” the group wrote. “Merry Christmas!”