Hundreds online call for boycott of midwest grocery chain after local manager has 19-year-old autistic deli worker arrested for ‘stealing’ fruit cups and ‘portions of chicken’: video

Midwestern supermarket chain Meijer is coming under fire after recently released police bodycam footage showed a store manager having a 19-year-old autistic deli worker arrested for “stealing” food.

Footage circulating on social media in the past few days shows James Denison being confronted by police in the manager’s office of a Seven Hills, Ohio, Meijer location on March 7, 2024.

Video showed the seemingly self-satisfied store manager make the petty accusations against the teen, who sheepishly sits in a store-branded polo shirt.

“So we have, uh, James here,” the unidentified store manager told the officer, pointing a finger gun at the boy, the clip shows.

“He works in our deli department and we found out that he’s just been taking some, like, orders of chicken and fruit cups and stuff like that,” the bald man said with an odd smile creeping onto his face.

The manager claimed the “theft” amounted to $110 over a three-month period — which Denison said was the cost of some of his shift lunches, which he forgot to repay.

The teen, who remained calm and compliant throughout, was then searched and handcuffed in the office, the video showed.

He told the officer that he lives locally and walks to work every day.

When asked if Denison had any of the allegedly stolen items on his person, the manager replied that before the meeting, the teen had eaten a portion of chicken in the break room.

The teen was then put in the back of a police vehicle and taken to the local precinct, where he was booked for minor theft.

The arresting officer attempted to calm the frightened Denison during the trip, the footage shows.

“We do things a little differently than a lot of departments. We kind of help people out,” the officer said.

Despite being understanding, the officer arrested, fingerprinted, and booked Denison, who was released without bond, according to the video.

The video recently circulated on social media, with many users calling for a boycott of Meijer. Hundreds posted on X with the hashtag “boycottmeijer” and thousands have commented on viral clips from the bodycam footage.

A GoFundMe launched Sunday on behalf of Denison by Kerry Campbell, a registered nurse in Florida, has already raised $28K for Denison’s legal fees, transportation, cost of living, and food.

Meijer did not respond to The Post’s request for comment.