Still trite old recycled gossip that, over the years, develops a sort of 'folklore' of its own. Yes some crewmembers used to 'borrow' dressing gowns and odds and ends. But 'looking glasses' and 'coffetables'? I don't think so! In those days Customs wanted receipts for EVERYTHING imported. That gets conveniently forgotten. In another 20 years it will be 'sofas' and 'double beds'!
People actually believe these fables now, like the guy with a truck in Arizona who strapped a Hercules jetpack on the back and buried himself in a cliff, aand the old lady who dried off her poodle in the microwave, and I just got sent YET AGAIN the story of the man who sets the cruise control of his campervan and goes into the back to make a coffee. Time, and the number of tellings, gives it a strength of truthfulness of its own. There will be people peddling this garbage forever. No escape.