LA Police Trot Out Shaq For Recruitment As San Francisco Tries to Bring in Potential Texas Cops

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Shaquille O'Neal
Photo Credit: MarkScottAustinTX, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Former LA Lakers star Shaquille O’Neal appeared in a recruitment ad for the Los Angeles Port Police, amid reports that San Francisco is headhunting law enforcement officers out of Texas.

In a humorous, albeit low poorly acted police ad, likely due to the county’s entire population of actors passing on paid gigs to strike, a group of officers surround a suspect and order him to surrender.

Despite being pinned down by several officers and his only escape option being a dip in the port, the criminal refuses to give up.

That’s when they call in the big guns and Shaq rolls in on the side of an armored vehicle.

He merely points at the back of a squad car and the previously defiant suspect hightails it into the backseat of the vehicle.

In the closing scene, Shaq and four fellow officers stand together in front of the armored truck.

“Team is more important than any one of us. If you have what it takes to join the Los Angeles Port Police, come on down. It’s time to dive in,” he states.

O’Neal, who has spent his retirement as an NBA commentator, moonlighted as a reserve officer for the Los Angeles Port Police in 2005, then went on to serve at police departments in Miami Beach, Golden Beach, South Florida, and Tempe, Arizona.

“Big thanks to @Shaq for his continued support for law enforcement and spending time with his old police department. It was great to see him back in our uniform,” his former department captioned the video.

The ad came out days before the San Francisco Standard reported that San Francisco was trying to recruit blue blood for their defunded police department in red state of Texas.

For the first time ever, the San Francisco Police Department is scheduled to visit four Texas collegiate campuses to recruit prospective law enforcement officers.

This month they’ll be going to Texas Southern University, Sam Houston State University, Prairie View A&M University, and Texas A&M University in an effort to bring recruits to the Golden State.

The move comes days after California Governor Gavin Newsom pledged $267 million to fight rampant retail theft, which will likely cost the state $19 billion in “lost product costs, higher insurance costs, increased price of goods and unrealized wages,” according to the Daily Mail.

Flash mobs of bandits have been raiding luxury stores in rapid smash and grabs that have cost high end retailers like Yves Saint Laurent, Gucci, and Burberry hundreds of thousands of dollars in mere minutes.

A gang of around 30 people smashed their way through Nordstrom in Topanga last month, specifically looting high end bags, after neutralizing store security guards with bear spray.

In just minutes they made off with $300,000 in product and left the retail store trashed in a wake of shattered glass and destroyed displays.

The problem is so bad in crime-ridden Los Angeles, that the police department had to form an Organized Retail Crime Taskforce to combat the issue.

“The task force will consist of highly trained detectives with expertise in theft prevention, sophisticated investigative techniques, and community engagement,” announced LAPD Chief Michel Moore.

“Their mission is multi-fold: to eliminate the recent incidents of violent robberies at retail establishments, reduce incidents of organized retail theft, and foster a safer shopping environment for everyone.”

On Sept. 14, Newsom announced the multi-million dollar investment into the putting an end to retail theft at the state level.

“When shameless criminals walk out of stores with stolen goods, they’ll walk straight into jail cells.” he remarked.

The endowment will be spread across 55 state law enforcement agencies, 41 sheriffs’ and police departments, along with a grant of $2 million to each 13 district attorneys’ offices, to prosecute shoplifters and establish “intelligence centers.”

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