Police are urging people to ‘think before they buy’ in an effort to crack down on shoplifting offences across West Yorkshire. During interviews with police, offenders have openly discussed how easy it is to sell on the goods that they have stolen. Retailers are suffering as a result of this crime, with goods being stolen including foodstuffs, personal accessories and clothing. The West Yorkshire force says that it is vital that everyone understands their role in reducing the opportunity for this type of crime to occur. Shoplifters have stated that goods are sold on via numerous routes from within the local community to some pubs and car boot markets.
Chris Joyce, Force Crime Prevention Officer for West Yorkshire, says: “The idea that shoplifting is a victimless crime is far from reality. Some individuals committing this crime do not see a victim, they see a corporate organisation who they feel can simply restock the day after and not be affected by the loss of their products.
“Shoplifting has a huge impact on the retail sector, the economy and the local community – some stores may end up closing, jobs could be lost and facilities that local people require could cease to operate. Shoplifting impacts on everyone and everyone has a responsibility to assist in reducing this type of crime and the market enabling shoplifters to sell on stolen goods. Shoplifting is no different to any other type of theft and buying the items that shoplifters steal constitutes the handling of stolen goods, both of which are criminal offences – if you are caught with stolen goods then you should expect to face the consequences.
“People who buy items from car boot sales, in the pub or at the front door when the price seems too good to be true need to think twice. If a deal is too good to be true then it almost certainly is. If you know your regular perfume costs £30 when you buy it from a regular store, and someone is offering it at £5 in the pub, then you know there is something not quite right. The same principal applies when purchasing any items, from perfume to cosmetics or joints of meat to personal accessories. People might think they are getting a bargain, that it doesn’t really matter to anyone, and that the crime is ‘victimless’ – we all like legitimate bargains, but ones associated with criminal activity are obviously a different matter.
“Some shoplifters spend the vast majority of money they make from shoplifting on drugs, sometimes as much as 95 per cent. It goes without saying that drugs have a terrible impact on our communities, so that £5 spent on a bottle of stolen perfume has much wider implications and consequences. As a force we are working with our partners in the retail sector to explore additional ways to reduce the opportunity for shoplifting to occur, the collaborative approach is vital in preventing theft from shop and the number of victims as a result of it. The cultural acceptance that shoplifting is victimless has to change.”
A spokesperson for The Co-operative Food said: “Thefts from any retailer should never be described as ‘victimless’. As a leading convenience retailer in the heart of local communities across the region, stealing from a store can have the same impact as a crime against an individual. Shoplifting, and also the acquisition of stolen goods, has a negative effect, not only on the store and the local economy, but also for staff and customers. We take all incidents of shoplifting very seriously, and work closely with West Yorkshire Police to identify and apprehend offenders. We have invested considerably in security measures at all of our stores and each one is fitted with CCTV.”
Besides not buying stolen goods there is another way residents can help police crack down on shoplifting, say police. The Caught on Camera section of the West Yorkshire Police website: http://www.westyorkshire.police.uk/camera-alerts/caught-on-camera features photos of people wanted in connection with alleged offences.
It is regularly updated and often features photos of people officers want to speak to in connection with allegations of shoplifting. “Caught on Camera is a very popular section of the website and frequently displays high quality images of people that we want to trace,” added Chris Joyce. “If people go on the site there is every chance they will recognise someone. Their call might give us the final piece in the jigsaw we need to identify a prolific offender and bring someone to justice.”
