After robbery, Plymouth executives unite to give Walmart employee a gift

After being robbed outside the Plymouth store where he works, a Walmart employee was handed thousands of dollars from local police, authorities and business owners on Wednesday.

The first incident occurred on August 23, when Steven Galandzi was waiting outside Walmart at 300 Colony Place. Three people, believed to be men, were begging there, police said. They surrounded Galandzi, who has autism, and “continually pressured” him to give them money.

Galandzi was forced to open his wallet three times, police said, only to empty it. He lost $150 in cash.

Plymouth Police posted blurry footage of the incident on Facebook, hoping the public could help identify the suspects.

When someone commented on the post asking for information on how to donate to Galandzi, a member of the department responded and said there was already a plan in the works.

“We’ve already taken care of it here at HQ… We’ll give the envelope a few more days to fill it,” Plymouth Police wrote on Facebook.

That promise was kept this week, when Galandzi was met outside the store by Chief Dana Flynn, City Manager Derek Brindisi, Massachusetts State Police Association President Patrick McNamara, as well as than other local business officers and owners.

“Everyone introduced themselves to Steven and handed him Big. Fat. Envelopes. The kind you saw on the Sopranos,” Plymouth Police wrote on Facebook. “We are fortunate to have such caring entrepreneurs in our city. They also took turns explaining to Steven that what happened to him will never be accepted in our community. We can only hope we’ve turned a shitty memory for Steven and his family into a great one.

In total, Galandzi received more than $3,000 in cash, checks and gift cards, CBS reported.

Police said an investigation into the case was still ongoing, led by detectives from Plymouth. The authorities have received some information, but this “has not been successful”.