Category Archives: Shoplifting

According to the Independent website, Jellycats, the sought-after soft toys are being targeted by criminal shoplifting gangs and thieves.

Garden centres, gift and bookshops up and down the country are facing incidents of shoplifting that has left traders thousands of pounds out of pocket.

The Mirror website reports that the UK is in the grip of a wave of ‘Kamikaze’ shoplifting – as brazen thieves snatch goods in plain sight with little fear of consequences.

Over half (56%) of retail workers say they’ve witnessed so-called Kamikaze shoplifting – blatant, in-your-face theft.

The BBC News website reports that a woman was wrongly accused of shoplifting toilet roll due to an apparent mix-up with a facial recognition system.

Danielle Horan was left “fuming” after being ejected from two Home Bargains stores and initially given no explanation.

According to the Kent Online website, workers at a charity shop have had to close fitting rooms and hide stock, as clothes, shoes and even furniture handles are stolen.

Staff at Making a Difference to Maidstone (MADM) described the surge in shoplifting as a “slap in the face”.

The This Is Money website reports that independent retailers face being put out of business by an epidemic of shoplifting, violence and rogue traders.

Figures show 96 per cent of small shop owners said rising retail crime – plus tax hikes and high energy costs – have made it harder for their businesses to survive.

As reported on The Standard website, London’s Oxford Street and other ‘flagship’ thoroughfares are at risk without urgent national action on crime.

Once Europe’s busiest shopping destination, Oxford Street has struggled in recent years – becoming better known for shoplifting, phone snatching and sweet shops.