Complete Meals QUITS San Francisco over ’employees security’ after Bob Lee homicide shines highlight
Whole Foods opened a store in San Francisco, US, in March 2022, but months later reduced its hours after “grand theft” — the closure came just weeks after Cash App founder and tech superstar Bob Lee was killed in the city
Whole Foods has closed its store after admitting employees were unsafe in the city (
Whole Foods has closed its San Francisco store because the company “cannot ensure the safety of employees” days after tech mogul Bob Lee was stabbed to death.
The popular supermarket chain had opened a flagship store in March 2022, but just months later the store reduced its hours in San Francisco, California, amid rising drug problems and “frequent thefts”.
The store experienced hostile customers and store managers were forced to restrict use of the toilets to customers after used syringes and tubes were found on the floor in November.
Local shopper Allyn Mejia said she wasn’t surprised the company had raised concerns about employees after security guards burst into the store to deal with unruly customers.
She told Newsweek, “I saw security rush into the store very quickly before anything happened.”
Tech mogul Bob Lee was attacked in San Francisco
San Francisco District Manager Matt Dorsey said he was “incredibly disappointed but sadly not surprised” by the closure of Whole Foods.
“Our neighborhood has been waiting for this supermarket for a long time, but we’re also aware of the problems they’ve had with retail drug thefts, adjacent drug markets and the many security issues that come with it,” he said.
A Whole Foods Market spokesman told the San Francisco Standard that the closure may be temporary.
A homeless man is seen in the Tenderloin neighborhood of San Francisco(
It said: “We are only closing our Trinity location for the time being. When we feel we can ensure the safety of our team members in store, we will consider reopening our Trinity location.”
The decision to close the store came after Cash App founder Bob Lee died in San Francisco on April 4 after being stabbed twice in the chest.
His death sparked an outcry from tech leaders like Elon Musk and revealed fears of a deepening drug and crime crisis in San Francisco, a well-known tech hub.
Homeless people are seen in San Francisco(
According to the victim’s friend, the tech boss himself had moved out of the California city because he feared things were “getting worse.”
And Mr Musk said he was “very sorry” to hear about Mr Lee’s death, before criticizing what he saw as a crime out of control.
He tweeted: “A lot of people I know have been badly attacked. Violent crimes in SF are horrific, and even when attackers are caught, they are often released immediately.”
The city has a high crime and drug rate (
The billionaire called San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jennings and asked, “Is the city taking stricter measures to incarcerate repeat offenders?”
Matt Ocko, a technology entrepreneur and venture capitalist from Palo Alto, California, tweeted that the leaders of “lawless” San Francisco had “literally blood on their hands” from Mr Lee following the recent raid on the city.
A huge homeless camp in California(
The 43-year-old was visiting San Francisco after returning from Miami for a “quick visit” after planning to stay an extra day, according to friends.
CCTV footage showed Mr Lee walking down an empty San Francisco street in the early hours of the morning, lifting his shirt to show a driver his wounds before driving away.
In disturbing footage from a local newspaper, he was seen begging a driver: “Help. Someone stabbed me.”
Flowers and cards were left near the Portside apartment building in San Francisco, California where Bob Lee was tragically stabbed(
According to reports, Mr Lee can be seen on CCTV running towards the Bay Bridge before falling to the ground in front of a residential building around 2.30am.
Police found the engineering chief unconscious before taking him to the hospital, where he tragically died from his injuries.
