#LaptopStolenAtStarb...

#LaptopStolenAtStarbucks #StarbucksNeverAgain #StarbucksNuncaMas #Starbucks #StarbucksCoffee #StarbucksPerú #StarbucksLima #Benavides #Lima #Peru #HowardSchultz #Lasino #LasinoSA #ObstructionOfJustice #ObstrucciónDeLaJusticia

 

ATTENTION MY DEAR AMIGOS Y AMIGAS: I would sincerely appreciate if you would share this post with your friends and family on your social networks so these problems can be resolved and prevented so other people don't have to go through the absolute nightmare I have gone through! Muchas gracias! Abrazos fuertazos! :) :D <3

 

As I write to you now, the day crossed from ¨night¨ into ¨midnight¨, which also happens to mark the one month anniversary, since my most prized possession, ¨my baby¨, was stolen from #StarbucksPerú ‪#‎Coffee‬ Store on Avenida ‪#‎Benavides‬ 778, in the #Miraflores district in #Lima , #Peru .

 

You know that store. The store that is also inside the University of ISIL at the cross section of Paseo del Republica.

 

My ‪#‎laptop‬, also affectionately known as ¨lappy¨, just happened to be the most expensive possession I owned as a human being. ¨What happened?¨, you may ask? It was savagely ripped from the clutches of my fingers while I was sitting down, enjoying a cup of my non-‪#‎organic‬, most likely non-‪#‎Peruvian‬ #Starbucks Coffee (Café Americano to be exact) as I had done for many years, while diving deep into super interesting conversations about Pre-Incan and #Peruvian history with a new friend and possible new business partner as we discussed opportunities on how to help the #indigenous communities in the Peruvian #Andes and the #Amazon jungles to develop #sustainable and environmentally-conscious #economies using eco-tourism as a means to explore the rich cultural traditions of this fascinating country I’ve come to call home: el ‪#‎Perú‬.

 

It was only later, after our riveting conversation, did I come to realize that my laptop had been silently whisked off to the ¨Never-Neverland¨ of missing laptops where they disappear forever. Never to be never seen again. Usually, never ever.

 

Ok, so the laptop wasn’t exactly ripped out of my hands. I completely fabricated that part only to demonstrate how this #theft felt on the inside. I was in a state of absolute shock honestly. It was as if my #heart and #soul was ripped out of my chest (assuming that’s where the soul resides of course).

 

As strange as this may sound, it was like a family member dying. My entire life was on that laptop. All of the projects I have worked on since I arrived to #Guatemala more than 3 years ago today to teach indigenous #Mayan #communities how to build their very own ¨#Earthship¨ homes made with #RecycledMaterials . A life altering experience thanks to the U.S. non-profit organization #LongWayHome and the indisputable visionary and super weird genius of #MichaelReynolds of #EarthshipBiotecture .

 

All of my photos I have taken in the last three years, travelling and working in ‪#‎LatinAmerica‬ from ‪#‎Mexico‬ to ‪#‎Guatemala‬, from #CostaRica and to ‪#‎Columbia‬, and finally in ¨el Perú.¨ They were photos that can´t be replaced but I will never forget them.

 

I realize backing up my data is my responsibility and that my data will probably never be recovered, I somehow, for some reason, miss my laptop even more than all of those photos.

 

He was my travel buddy as I made my ¨Run for the border¨ in the opposite direction of conventional wisdom. He came with me as followed my heart and swam south and waded through the incredibly beautiful and breath-taking rivers and lakes of ‪#‎CentralAmerica‬ and ‪#‎SouthAmerica‬, or what I also call the ¨#LatinAmericaDream¨.

 

If I were #Maverick of ¨#TopGun¨, my lappy was definitely my ¨#Goose¨.

 

He was my co-pilot when I was offered new projects to work on #Permaculture design projects like the 5 family Eco-village in ‪#‎Pachacamac‬, Peru, or creating and designing #Environmental #Campaigns for the #schools of Peru that teach Peruvian #children how to take care of ¨‪#‎Pachamama‬¨ with their hands in the dirt, mud in their hair, and smiles on their faces.

 

Yep. My ¨lappy¨ was the best.

 

One month later, after my laptop was stolen from Starbucks, while sitting next to my feet, it appears that I am now a victim of ‪#‎IdentityTheft‬ as well. Only two days ago someone attempted to fraudulently access my bank account in the #UnitedStates AND was even able to get past the security authentication of my bank, over the phone, with either my social security number, my bank account number, and or my pin number.

 

Good thing I’m broke and don’t have a penny to my name, otherwise this entire situation could have been even more devastating than it already still is.

 

It has now taken #Starbucks exactly ONE MONTH for them to deliver the security cam video from this store to the police so the ¨investigation¨ can begin since my laptop was stolen on May 2nd.

 

Pardon my language, but are you fucking kidding me? How can justice ever be served in this manner?

 

In #LatinAmerica , where there is not a chance in hell it would be recovered? Is this that ¨Great and Premium Executive Service¨ Starbucks keeps proclaiming in their advertisements? Is Starbucks really taking care of their clients when they deliberately obstruct justice after you’ve been robbed in board day light in their store?

 

That’s not only bad service. It’s criminal.

 

So after much frustration in dealing with the absolutely atrocious customer service of Starbucks and their management, after speaking with a very tenured business professional and a damn good friend, I decided to write #HowardSchultz , the #CEO of Starbucks, a small but brief letter of what transpired and my promise to never, never ever, set foot inside another Starbucks again until these problems are resolved.

 

I also happened to find the email addresses and phone numbers of almost the entire Board of Directors of Starbucks, the Executive Vice Presidents of Starbucks Latin America and many other divisions, and I copied them in the same email I sent to Howard, the CEO.

 

Thanks, #Google .

 

Here is what I wrote:

 

Dear Mr. Howard Schlutz,

 

Let me first begin by thanking you for taking a quick moment out of your busy day to read this letter. Most of us have very busy lives to attend to, and I am no different. Let me briefly introduce myself. I am a U.S. citizen currently working and living in Lima, Peru, where many of your stores are located. Like you, I came from a blue collar family and was the first person in my family to receive a college degree, and after receiving my degree in Finance, I worked for some of the biggest companies in the United States, including Centex, Dell, and IBM, to name a few. I now own and operate my own consultancy company in Peru and I have been working with some of the largest companies in Peru for the last two years, including companies such as Repsol and Graña y Montero. When I need to meet with any of my clients, I tell them, ¨meet me in my office¨, warmly referring to one of your Starbucks stores as our meeting place of business.

 

I am certain that you are well aware that you and your company have revolutionized the social meeting place for business professionals, and others alike, which is why I have felt so comfortable in inviting some of my most important clients to meet in your stores.

 

However, as of May 2nd 2016, I no longer have confidence in the bringing my clients to your stores, nor do I feel safe going to your stores as I was robbed in broad daylight in your Starbucks store located at Avenida Benavides 778, Miraflores, Lima, Peru, (Store STB-37), which resulted in my very expensive laptop being stolen while it was in my possession and thousands of dollars of time and work lost that I will never get back. On top of an already traumatizing situation, your management staff at this store, Maria Casteñeda, Jardani Atoche, Paulo Villegas, and Ana Lenguz, have completely ¨mis-managed¨ this incident from the very beginning. Not only did they refused to let myself and the police to see the video immediately after the theft took place to identify the thief, they have offered absolutely nothing in return for my stolen laptop – Not even not even a free coffee. Additionally, this store has not one security guard in it where many of your stores in Lima do because of previous robberies.

 

The very reason I visited your store(s) every day, sometimes 3 times a day, for the last 3 years was because of the environment you and your company have created at Starbucks. I felt safe. Safe enough to bring my clients and discuss business in your stores. I keep all of my receipts from Starbucks for tax purposes. After reviewing my all of my transactions with your company, I was spending between $80 and $100 USD a month in your stores. Is this how Starbucks treats its loyal customers who have helped make Starbucks the billion dollar company it is today?

 

To resolve the problem, I need my laptop to be replaced equal or greater in value. Attached are copies of the police report concerning the theft that occurred in your store, the complaint filed with the Peruvian Government Consumer Rights organization Indecopi, and the receipts of my purchases at Starbucks to demonstrate my loyalty to your company.

 

I look forward to your reply and a resolution to my problem. I will wait 3 business days before seeking third-party assistance. You may contact me at my email address or by my Peruvian phone number.

 

Sincerely,

 

Justin Lee Henson

 

The screen capture photo attached to this post is the email I received tonight from ¨Kurt¨ of the Executive Office of Howard Schlutz, the CEO, Founder, and Chairman of the Board of Starbucks… or what is more commonly referred to as the ¨Armed Services¨ division of Starbucks. Have a look at the bottom of Kurt’s signature to see what I’m talking about.

 

I have given them three days to act and they only have a day and half before I proceed with ¨Third Party Assistance¨. Wish me luck! :)

 

No te preocupes hermanitos y hermanitas! Voy a tener lo mismo post en castellano mañana! Buenas noches! :)

Done