Employee grows tired of unknown coworker stealing their lunch, so they cleverly replace it with disguised dog food, forcing coworker to stop: ‘Sure enough, the theft stopped within a week’

Author image for Bar Mor Hazut
Bar Mor Hazut • Senior Editor
Dec 27, 2024 9:00 AM EST

There is an episode in Friends where Ross has a breakdown because someone eats his sandwich at work, and he doesn't know who did it. And although the scenario in the show is hilarious, surely we can all understand his pain and annoyance over something like that.

Think about it, an employee spent time, effort, and money into making themselves lunch they can eat at work, only to have someone anonymously take it and eat it themself – The audacity is unbelievable! How can someone do that with a clear conscience? How can they later look that person in the eyes and act like they didn't steal this one small moment of happiness during a long day of work? Cruelty at its finest, if you ask me.

If something like that happens once, it's unfortunate but can be forgotten. If it happens twice, maybe you should consider putting a threatening note on your food, to warn others from taking it. If it happens again, then serious actions should be taken.

The employee in this petty revenge story took matters into their own hands after a coworker repeatedly stole their lunch from under their nose, and it wasn't long before they got the thief to stop. How did they pull it off? You'll have to keep reading to find out…

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    Cheezburger Image 10447191552
    via JackF

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

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    A coworker kept stealing my lunch, so I started leaving fake leftovers to teach them a lesson
    via GraceBreezy21
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    For months, I'd noticed my lunch would mysteriously "go missing" from the office fridge. I knew it wasn't just a mistake because my containers would be emptied and left behind. I tried labeling my
    via GraceBreezy21
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    food, hiding it in the back of the fridge, even bringing super spicy food to deter them, but nothing worked.
    via GraceBreezy21

  • At this point, OP (original poster) knows without a doubt that whoever is stealing their food, they are doing it on purpose, and they do not care. 

    The only solution to dealing with someone so clearly entitled and disrespectful is teaching them a lesson, which is exactly what OP decided to do…

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    Finally, I had enough. I started bringing in containers filled with random, disgusting stuff to mess with them. One day it was canned dog food disguised as chili, another day it was mashed
    via GraceBreezy21
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    cauliflower dyed bright green. My masterpiece was a container of jello mixed with tuna. I labeled everything as usual and waited.
    via GraceBreezy21

  • If you have a problematic coworker like this, we suggest you take notes – There are some clever options here that can make your life much easier.

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    Sure enough, the thefts stopped within a week. No one confessed, but I overheard someone complaining about feeling "sick all day" after lunch. I couldn't help but smile. Am I the petty one here, or did they deserve it?
    via GraceBreezy21
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    ΟΙ Grace Breezy21 OP • 5h ago To answer a question I keep getting yes, I'm 100% sure it wasn't just a misunderstanding. I even did a test by leaving a decoy sandwich on a random shelf, and it disappeared like all the rest. And no, I didn't target anyone specifically, just whoever thought my food was a free buffet.
    via GraceBreezy21
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    Lopsided-Bench-1347 • 27m ago • One thing I learned way back is never complain or tell anyone that your food is being taken. The company won't do anything and you will be the bad guy complainer. plus you could get
    via Lopsided-Bench-1347
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    into trouble for knowing trying to make someone sick. The sick person can't complain without admitting theft and even if they do, you had plausible deniability for not knowing as you never said you knew.
    via Lopsided-Bench-1347
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    photogfrog 30m ago • You're petty and I am here for this level of petty. Be careful tho....
    via photogfrog
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    Relevant-Customer-45 • 12m ago • Stealing someone's lunch is a terrible thing to do. Some people have food allergies, and can't eat take-away. Or they might be diabetic, and could be in serious trouble (hypoglycemia).
    via Relevant-Customer-45
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    NiobeTonks 3h ago Top 5% Commenter Or are in severe financial difficulties. There was a time where my salary didn't stretch to the end of the month (I changed careers and took a steep drop in salary) and I had to budget my food shop very carefully. Someone regularly stealing my lunch would mean not eating for 8 hours.
    via NiobeTonks
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    farvag1964 13m ago Top 1% Commenter This isn't petty This is masterclass
    via farvag1964
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    Avalon_Angel525 • 4h ago • There's a famous post on Ask a Manager where an employee got fired after a lunch thief accused her of trying to poison him with spicy food. That story takes a lot of twists and turns,
    via Avalon_Angel525
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    but the fact that she got into trouble for HER spicy food (which was just leftovers from her dinner the night before) and not the lunch thief was sadly not surprising.
    via Avalon_Angel525
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    mobileJay77.5h ago. You can always deny the trap. "I brought the dog food for my sister's dog"
    via mobileJay77
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    NoAd7364 • 58m ago I worked for a defense contractor and had my lunch and Tupperware taken out of the fridge one day. Didn't go to manager went right to our facility security officer who handled secret and top secret clearances. Right then and there she opened an investigation and shut building
    via NoAd7364
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    down. Found out who did it, wasn't a mistake as the Tupperware was in their garbage underneath stuff. Made them pay me for my lunch and suspended their clearance for three. months, wrote them up and put a black mark on their Clarence file
    via NoAd7364
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    Black Magic_M-66 54m ago • My company installed a fake camera in the kitchen because people weren't doing their dishes. I mean, the camera was real but it wasn't hooked up. People complained and management showed them that the wire was cut and went nowhere. People still cleaned up after themselves though.
    via Black _Magic_M-66
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    Cthulhu • 6m ago It's amazing how more honest people become when there's even just the perception of being observed.
    via Cthulhu_
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    ArchLith . 2h ago • There was a long period of time where someone eating my lunch at work meant I didn't eat at all that day. Nobody has ever messed with my food though, and it probably has something to do with the fact that when I don't eat I can become I legitimate danger to the people around me.
    via ArchLith
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    Narrow-Year-3664 • 3h ago • I cant understand that HR take stealing lunches more serious. Like if a coworker have no problem stealing from coworkers what stops them from stealing from the company.
    via Narrow-Year-3664
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    gadget_girl 4h ago • You handled this like a pro. I have no sympathy for lunch thieves. Creative seasonings and ingredients are absolutely the way to go.
    via _gadget_girl
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    Thomisawesome 3h ago I can't understand how so many companies take a blasé stance on employees steeling food. If the employee was caught taking money out of someone's desk, it would be a huge problem, but a sandwich? Totally fine.
    via Thomisawesome
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    rm-rf-asterisk • 5h ago It's your food you can put whatever you want into it.
    via rm-rf-asterisk

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Tags

lunch break workplace-stories employee petty-revenge-reddit job tales-from-the-workplace coworkers reddit story petty revenge lunch workplace food Reddit company theft coworker funny
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