‘My life is hard enough as it is’: An influencer faked a $10 theft from a Red Baron worker. The internet raised over $500,000 for him
Life-changing.
A Red Baron employee was just trying to finish his shift when a social media prankster approached him and pretended to steal $10 from his phone. The worker was not amused, and his response quickly went viral. Now, strangers online have raised more than $500,000 for him after hearing about the financial pressure he was already facing.
The encounter took place at a grocery store in White Lake, Michigan, where the employee, identified as Walt Z., was stocking frozen pizzas. The prankster approached him to ask for the time. When Walt pulled out his phone, the person played a sound effect resembling an Apple Pay transaction and claimed to have taken $10 from him.
Walt initially tried to brush off the interaction, but the prankster continued provoking him. The employee eventually explained that he was already working late, had four children at home, and was struggling to pay his mortgage.
“I don’t have time for this. My life is hard enough as it is,” he said in the video, adding that he could not afford his mortgage payments.
The prankster insisted that it was only a joke, but Walt made it clear that the situation was not funny to him. He also said he was supposed to have been home an hour earlier and needed to wake up at 5 a.m. to visit 10 more stores. Similar pranks involving food service workers have also drawn backlash online, particularly when employees are filmed simply trying to do their jobs.
The footage, which reportedly dates back to an August incident, began circulating widely on social media in late October. The account associated with the original video, @thea.ctiveworld, also known as ThreeOfAKind, has since been deactivated.
Internet raises over $500,000 for Red Baron worker
As the video spread, viewers began looking for ways to help Walt and his family, much like they did for a blind Walmart employee whose paycheck video prompted thousands of dollars in donations. Luke Oakenshield, an Arizona resident who said he did not personally know the worker, started a GoFundMe campaign on October 27.
The fundraiser initially aimed to raise $100,000, but donations quickly surpassed that target. Its goal was subsequently increased to $700,000. At the time of writing, the campaign had collected more than $500,000 from over 14,000 donations.
Oakenshield eventually managed to contact Walt and confirmed the employee was aware of the fundraiser. According to the Detroit News, he shared that Walt was “absolutely blown away” by the support and that his family was requesting privacy. GoFundMe is working with the organizer to ensure the donations reach Walt.
The company behind Red Baron has also addressed the incident. Schwan’s Company confirmed that the employee was a direct store delivery worker and said the incident occurred in August. It added that the company had checked on him after the encounter and continued to offer support.
Red Baron also appeared to acknowledge the public response in a social media post, writing, “He’s still here. He’s got a fan club. Including us.” The post has garnered hundreds of thousands of comments and likes.
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