Gasoline prices continue climbing and setting almost daily new records highs, forcing some gas stations to take extreme measures to thwart gas thieves. Linda Casey, spokeswoman for the SuperAmerica chain, says the chain already had cameras and other security measures in place before the latest price hikes. Casey says “SuperAmerica is not seeing an increase in the number of drive-offs at its stores, however because the cost of gasoline is up, we are seeing our losses higher than we did last year.” Casey says when someone pumps gas and then drives off, it hurts everyone. She says “Drive offs are the same as shoplifting and when someone drives off, the company sustains a loss, just like a clothing store would sustain a loss and what happens then is that loss is then reflected in the higher cost of the product and you and I, who don’t drive off, pay for it.” Casey says the gas station and convenience store chain is fighting criminals in several ways. She says “We have some pretty extensive security measures in place including things like exterior security cameras, many of which are digital,” which enables the store to zoom in on license plate numbers. Gasoline prices in Iowa are averaging two-dollars-13-cents a gallon, the highest price ever. That’s up from a dollar-89 a month ago and a dollar-70 a year ago.
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