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A grocery store in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood is halting the sale of liquor to curb future crimes.
The Trader Joe's at 1700 Madison Street will stop selling spirits after a rash of thefts targeted the location, a store manager told KOMO. This decision is indefinite, and there's no word on when the store will allow the sale of liquor again. The store will continue selling wine and beer.
The manager didn't provide details about any particular incidents, but reporters looked at crime data in the area to get an idea. They found that shoplifting made up 67% of the 21 property crimes reported so far in 2022.
At least four other Trader Joe's in Seattle are still selling hard liquor for now: University District, Queen Anne, West Seattle, and Ballard. The company hasn't made a comment about the Capitol Hill store's decision.
This news comes as several Seattle stores have shut down, either permanently or temporarily, amid spikes in crimes. Downtown Seattle in particular has seen multiple businesses move their operations to other parts of the city due to rampant incidents and even deadly shootings.
Five Starbucks locations closed in July, and an Amazon Go store temporarily shut down earlier this month. The owner of a popular bakery shut down a downtown location, saying "things only getting worse."