The manager of a gas station in Rancho Cordova, California, was fired Monday after he set the price per gallon at the machines to 69 cents instead of its actual price of $6.99.
John Szczecina did not realize his mistake until hours after hundreds of cars approached the station to take advantage of the low cost, which amid the enormous increase in the value of fuel in that state did not go unnoticed.
"I put all three prices, except for
Diesel
. The last one was not put. So I took responsibility and said yes, it was my fault," Szczecina assured the ABC affiliate in California.
A man inserts a coin to purchase gasoline.Getty Images
Sacramento resident Darryl Surita posted the offer on social media, telling Newsweek that he called his mom and brother to come to the station.
"I thought it was too good to be true until I checked the gas meter in the car and it was full,
but I only spent $14
," Surita said.
The manager's mistake cost the Shell station $16,000.
Although so far it is not clear if the former employee is being asked to replace it, his family created a
GoFundme
with the aim of collecting the money and returning the sum to the company.
[Is there a risk that the economy will enter a recession soon? This is what you should know]
"This is a nightmare," Szczecina said in another interview with CBS California.
The median price of gasoline in the United States exceeded $5 a gallon for the first time in its history on Saturday.
The national median value was up 19 cents in the last week alone and is up $1.93 from the same period last year.
They warn of the charges that those who buy illegal gasoline in the US will face.
June 10, 202201:17
In California, prices have soared to $6.43 a gallon
, according to the American Automobile Association.
World oil prices are rising, aggravated by sanctions imposed on Russia, one of the main oil producers, because of its war against Ukraine.
And refining capacity in the United States is limited because some refineries have closed during the pandemic.
