There is no mistaking the message: Thieves are not welcome in Big Bee convenience stores.

Over the last several months the chain has taken to posting photos of customers allegedly captured shoplifting. The images are posted all over three corporately-run stores across Hamilton with brief summaries of the alleged infractions and a warning that the person is not welcome.

"It's more of a community message," says Ziad Reda, manager of the corporate stores. He added they want the public to know what these people look like.

This type of public shaming may be a good loss prevention strategy, but a legal expert says it could open the stores to the possibility of lawsuits from those who believe they've been falsely identified.

Hamilton criminal lawyer Asgar Manek said the stores are private property, so the owners are not breaking any laws. But they may be exposing themselves to potential defamation suits.

However, Manek points out that defamation lawyers are expensive and not covered by legal aid.

"How many people shoplifting have money to hire a defamation lawyer?" he said.

At the Big Bee location at 810 Main St. E., there are four photos posted in the front window.

In one, a woman is accused of stealing bacon; another shows footage from Dec. 13, 2014 where cameras captured a man who allegedly stole protein shakes.

It says: "Protein shakes make you faster but not smarter. We don't appreciate nor want these kinds of customers. Every time we catch customers stealing, we will post pictures of their face all over the store."

While a couple of protein shakes don't amount to a significant loss, over time, accumulated shoplifting represents significant losses for the company, Reda said. This leads to increased prices and hurts employees and customers.

Reda said they have had people pictured return to the store, where employees point out the images and tell them to never come back or they will call police. They never see them again.

For more serious offences, such as a robbery, Reda said they call police right away. But, unfortunately, petty shoplifting happens so often he feels they do not need to tie up police time.

Manek agreed the photos could act as a deterrent for other would-be shoplifters and said that even if a thief is charged, it's rare to for them to get any jail time.

Where the stores may be opening themselves to possible problems is on the issue of identification.

Manek noted that identification is often an issue in criminal robbery cases. Cameras aren't always clear, people can look different over time and people's memories are unreliable.

Manek says he always takes cases where he is defending an accused robber to trial, because no matter how clear-cut it may appear, a lawyer can often raise doubt about identity.

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Reda said they have a lot of cameras in the stores, which also include 180 James St. S. and 784 Concession St., and the thefts are clearly captured. No one has ever complained about being falsely identified and public feedback has been positive, he said.

Hamilton police say they would prefer all crimes are reported.

"Hamilton Police Service encourages all members of the community to report crimes to the police," said spokesperson Const. Steve Welton. "We absolutely want people to know that reporting crimes and information is encouraged and by doing so it allows us all to work towards a safer Hamilton."