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Woman Irate After Car Gets Towed From Grocery Lot

DENVER (CBS4) - Holiday shoppers beware. When shopping at the Cherry Creek Mall, make sure to actually park at the mall.

One woman thought it would be okay to park at the Safeway right next door to the mall.

"I'm very disappointed, I learned my lesson," Debbie Maring said.

Maring parked in the Safeway lot and made quick run to the store next door followed by another and then another at the Cherry Creek Mall. Roughly one hour later Maring experienced a sickening feeling when she couldn't find her car.

"Did we park the car there? We've been a lot of places," Maring said. "Who thinks you're going to come out and your car's going to be gone?"

Maring went into Safeway where she had shopped first and learned her minivan had been towed.

"It was gone, it was gone, merry Christmas," she said.

Guards outside Safeway will watch people come and go, but if they leave Safeway, they will be towed.

"I was expected, I guess, to give them the business, then move my car somewhere else to give someone else the business. It's busy, everybody's in a bad mood, there is no parking."

Maring got her van back after paying $201.

"Actually I haven't even read the sign, so I'm assuming it's something I should've done before, but we weren't even parked in front of a sign."

The signs on the back row, where she parked, are spaced five stalls apart.

"I did give you some business. I mean I wasn't like parked there all day doing all my Christmas shopping."

A spokeswoman for Safeway told CBS4 they don't want to tow cars, but she said the lot is small and there are some people who spend 4 or 5 hours elsewhere and that's not fair to their customers.

Years ago customers parking illegally would find a boot on their tire. The price to remove the boot was $50.

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