He insisted the piece was not aimed towards the shoplifter and apologised to his manager but the incident was flagged.

Walker told The Guardian how he was previously warned about approaching shoplifters but the recent increase of thefts had taken its toll.

“I’ve been there 17 years. I’ve seen it happen every hour of every day for the last five years,” he said.

There are no guards in the shop on Mondays and Tuesdays he explained because shoplifting incidents don’t get reported, so security was dialled back.

Walker admitted that he regretted his actions and said: “When I got home I was punching myself and thinking, ‘Why did I do that?’”

A few days after the incident he had a meeting with two store managers and despite telling them “Waitrose is like my family” he was sacked.

Walker was “demoralised” after the meeting and said he finished his 17 years as an employee by being led out the back doors by the bins.

He is now worried about becoming homeless after he moved into a studio flat just before he was dismissed.

Walker said the managers were aware of his anxiety diagnosis. He added that he was “not a bad or violent or aggressive person” but just grew frustrated at the constant thefts and lack of action from Waitrose.

A spokesperson for Waitrose said: “The safety and security of our Partners and customers couldn’t be more important to us, and we have policies in place to protect both.

“We’ve had incidents where our Partners have been hospitalised when challenging shoplifters. Luckily, they have always recovered, but that might not always be the case.

“There is a serious danger to life in tackling shoplifters. We refuse to put anyone’s life at risk and that’s why we have policies in place that are very clearly understood and must be strictly followed.

“As a responsible employer, we never want to be in a position where we are notifying families of a tragedy because someone tried to stop a theft. Nothing we sell is worth risking lives for.

“The reporting on this does not cover the full facts of the situation. While we would never be able to discuss an individual case, we can assure you the correct process is being followed, which includes a standard appeals procedure.

“We have campaigned for some time for more to be done to protect shop workers from offenders, including retail crime being made into a specific stand alone offence.”

This comes after several shops on Clapham High Street, including Waitrose, were forced to close as mobs of teenagers tore through the streets.

Youngsters have been terrorising the South London suburb in social media-fuelled “link-ups” which have seen two teens arrested.

Similar events have occurred in Birmingham with a gang of yobs terrorising the city centre on Saturday as the Easter holidays began.

An M&S boss accused London Mayor Sadiq Khan of failing to crack down on crime.

He wrote in The Telegraph: “Without a Government seriously cracking down on crime and a Mayor that prioritises effective policing, we are powerless.”

Some retail chiefs have called for security staff to be given extra powers such as pepper spray and batons to help.

Stores are bracing for further crime amid news thousands of prolific shoplifters could escape prison under Labour’s plan to eliminate most jail sentences of less than a year.

Ministry of Justice data show that 98% of shoplifters currently behind bars would qualify for alternative “community punishments” under the new system.

Chocolate is a popular choice among shoplifters as the price of cocoa surges and the black market booms with looted chocolate at Easter

The retail price of chocolate is up 65 per cent in just four years and criminal gangs will sell on stolen confectionery to corner shops and pubs.