Ontario woman with special needs unknowingly sold $1,600 worth of cosmetics, claims caregiver

A controversy of interesting proportions is brewing on Facebook regarding an alleged employee selling an Ontario woman with special needs over $1,600 worth of skin care products on Wednesday.

Suzi Gordon, the caregiver of the unnamed woman, posted two receipts on her Facebook profile as proof of two purchases at an Oro Gold kiosk in The Pen Centre mall in St. Catharines.

Her post has gone viral with over 6,000 shares and 80 comments since being posted on Wednesday.

Gordon claims she was with her client at the mall when she stopped to talk to friend. Mere steps away, her client was getting a makeover by an employee at the Oro Gold kiosk. Gordon later walked over to the kiosk only to discover her client had made two purchases -- one for $565 and another for $1,130.

She claims the employee told her client the first purchase would be "five sixty five" and her second purchase "eleven thirty," which her client assumed meant $5.75 and $11.30, respectively. Gordon was outraged and demanded a full refund for her client, which she received.

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"We are appalled by the actions of this tenant and would like to apologize on behalf of the mall," reads a statement by The Pen Centre posted Thursday on their Facebook page.

"We have asked our staff to have all reports relating to Oro Gold ready for our review tomorrow morning. We have a call into the CEO of Oro Gold to discuss this situation with him personally. Please accept our sincere apologies and we will look to rectify this issue immediately," the statement continues.

The Pen Centre tells Yahoo Canada Shine in a Facebook message that the employee works for Oro Gold.

Yet a statement issued Thursday on Oro Gold's Facebook says otherwise.

"The sale in question did not occur at an OROGOLD store. Upon further investigation, we determined that the retail location is an unauthorized seller of OROGOLD products. We will ensure that all inventory is removed," reads the statement.

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"It has recently come to the attention of Oro Gold that a sale was made to a customer with special needs. We regret any hardship that this sale may have caused and reached out to the clients directly," another statement reads.

"OROGOLD does not condone discrimination of any kind however in some cases sensitivity is of the essence. It would appear that the sale in question was not made at an OROGOLD store but rather at a private vendor. Although the client in question did receive a complete refund OROGOLD is investigating the matter further. We value our customers satisfaction above all else. "

Gordon claims that the Oro Gold kiosk has been shut down as of Friday. She also claims that a representative from Oro Gold says the kiosk in question was not an authorized Oro Gold dealer.

"Just spoke to OROGOLD in California...this deff [sic] was not one of their authorized dealers...they were VERY appologetic [sic] and the lady I spoke to seemed genuinely sorry," she writes on Facebook. "I'm impressed!"

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