It started as a routine hardware-store trip: buy a door, grab a knob, get home before the new tenants move into a rental property. It ended in a Lowe’s parking lot, with a pregnant Houston-area woman publicly accused of shoplifting and millions watching her tell the story online.
A viral clip from frustrated shopper Nyssa (@nyssawho) kicks off a series of three TikTok videos where she details the encounter with staff at a Baytown Lowe’s who confronted her in the parking lot after she paid for her goods.
“I am at Lowe’s. I’m buying a door, a doorknob, door hinges, and a tool to cut out the hinge from the door,” she said in the clip that’s been viewed more than 33,000 times. “And she’s like, ‘No, did you pay for that? Did you even pay for it? I was like, clutching my pearls.”
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In the videos, Nyssa said the incident stemmed from a checkout delay caused by a dead phone and a declined physical credit card she hadn’t yet activated. After asking a Lowe’s employee if she could leave her cart near the store entrance while she charged her phone in her truck, she said the employee agreed.
When she returned about 10 minutes later, Nyssa said she retrieved the cart, added a small plastic insert needed for the door hinges, scanned four items at self-checkout, and paid roughly $110. As she walked out, she noticed a piece of paper on the cart, which she later learned was a “suspended transaction” receipt printed earlier when her purchase had been paused.
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“I didn’t touch it. I didn’t flip it over,” she said in the video. “I just scanned everything again and paid.”
Retail workers and shoppers commenting on the video said suspended or paused transactions are common at big-box stores when a checkout is interrupted. According to retail training materials and point-of-sale providers, a suspended transaction allows a cashier to temporarily hold an order so others can use the register, then resume it later without rescanning items.
‘Did you even pay for that?’
The confrontation, Nyssa said, happened after she exited the store and began loading her purchases into her truck in the parking lot.
She alleges a Lowe’s employee followed her outside and asked whether she had paid for the items. In the video, Nyssa said the employee told her she “didn’t scan anything,” a claim she strongly disputes.
“I was literally digging in my pocket for my receipt,” she said. “I offered to show it.”
Nyssa, who said she was 20 weeks pregnant at the time and had her 8-year-old son with her, described feeling embarrassed and threatened by the interaction, which she said escalated quickly due to the employee’s tone and proximity.
Most publicly available loss-prevention guidance emphasizes safety and de-escalation, a stance echoed broadly across the retail industry. Many national chains maintain “no chase” or “observe and report” policies designed to reduce the risk of injury to employees and customers, according to retail safety experts and insurers.
After the initial encounter, Nyssa said she returned to the store to speak with a manager. Portions of the interaction inside the store were recorded on audio, she said, to document what happened.
In the videos, Nyssa describes a crowded self-checkout area, raised voices, and growing frustration on all sides. She said the situation became especially upsetting when comments were made in front of her child and when another employee intervened to separate the parties.
“I was embarrassed. I was mortified,” she said. “This was completely avoidable.”
Nyssa said she later contacted the Baytown Police Department to document the encounter. According to her account, officers told her no criminal activity had occurred and that no theft report had been filed.
Police departments generally note that accusations of shoplifting typically require clear evidence of intent and unpaid merchandise to rise to a criminal offense under Texas law. An overview of Texas theft statutes is available through the Texas Penal Code, Section 31.03.
What’s the proper policy, procedure, and tone?
As the videos spread, commenters focused less on whether Nyssa paid and more on how the situation was handled.
Some viewers debated the mechanics of suspended transactions and whether a receipt printed earlier could have confused staff monitoring self-checkout. Others pointed to widely held retail norms discouraging employees from confronting customers in parking lots, citing safety concerns and liability risks.
A smaller but vocal group criticized Nyssa’s language toward the employee, arguing that front-line workers are often placed in difficult situations by corporate policies and understaffing.
Nyssa pushed back on that framing in the comments, saying employees should not put themselves at risk for a corporation’s bottom line. “Nobody gets paid enough to defend multimillion-dollar companies,” she wrote.
In the final video, Nyssa said she and her husband later returned the items to a different Lowe’s location to make a point. They then repurchased the same materials at Home Depot, she said, adding that the decision was “on principle.”
Nyssa also used the experience to criticize self-checkout more broadly, arguing that understaffed lanes and unclear procedures increase the likelihood of misunderstandings. Retail analysts have noted similar concerns as self-checkout adoption expands nationwide. A 2023 report from the National Retail Federation found retailers continuing to weigh convenience against shrinkage and customer frustration.
Nyssa closed her videos by urging both shoppers and retail workers to prioritize safety and de-escalation. While she said she does not believe anyone intended for the situation to spiral, she described the experience as a reminder of how quickly routine errands can turn confrontational.
Patch reached out to Nyssa via direct message and comment on the clip, and to Lowe’s via email. We’ll update this if they respond.
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