Two CVS pharmacies in Washington, DC, have been forced to create unconventional solutions to combat rampant shoplifting.

CVS Pharmacy at the H Street Northeast location is now using framed photographs of toilet papers and kitchen towels to stand in place of the real products. Customers must also press a button to request that staff retrieve the items from storage. Another CVS store in the Columbia Heights neighborhood keeps multiple items behind locked cages, while the aisles, otherwise bare due to missing products, have been marred by profane graffiti.

"This is how we live in America now? This is the third world!" conservative commentator Joey Mannarino, who shared images of the pharmacy's surreal transformation, voiced his disbelief. (Related: Shoppers forced to wait up to 40 minutes to buy basic essentials as major retailers LOCK UP goods to combat shoplifting.)

According to the latest data from the Metropolitan Police Department, cases of theft increased by 21 percent, with 10,673 reported incidents in 2023, while motor vehicle theft experienced a 101 percent increase compared to 2022. Meanwhile, reported violent crimes have surged by 41 percent, homicides by 33 percent and robberies by 70 percent compared to the previous year. In short, rampant crimes in Washington, D.C. have reached crisis levels.

As a result, CapitalOne Research estimated that stores lost $86.6 billion to retail theft in 2022, with a projection that this figure could exceed $155 billion by 2025. UBS analysts have also predicted that at least 50,000 shops will close in the U.S. over the next five years due to the surge in theft coupled with the shift toward online shopping.

True enough, the prediction is already happening. CVS announced its plan to close 900 of its stores across the U.S. to focus on its online market. Its loss due to rampant shoplifting and other retail crimes is costing the industry $112 billion annually, according to the National Retail Federation.

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