Wal-Mart worker fired for foiling theft

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WICHITA, Kan., May 26 (UPI) -- A Wichita, Kan., woman says she was fired from Wal-Mart after stopping a thief from stealing a $600 computer.

"I'm a single mom, and I don't know what I'm going to do," said Heather Ravenstein, 30, who worked for Wal-Mart for two years, most recently in customer service.

Ravenstein said she was kicked and punched Friday night by a man who was trying to carry a computer out of the Wal-Mart store in Wichita's West Kellogg neighborhood. The man eventually surrendered the computer and left, Ravenstein told The Wichita (Kan.) Eagle.

The next day, Ravenstein was fired for violating a Wal-Mart policy that prohibits anyone but a manager or someone in asset protection from stopping theft, the Eagle reported Wednesday. Ravenstein said she had never heard of the policy.

In an e-mail to the Eagle, Wal-Mart spokeswoman Anna Taylor said Ravenstein put her safety and perhaps the safety of customers at risk by confronting the thief.