THE police and crime commissioner for Essex has insisted the force has a “real focus” on cracking down on shoplifting – after figures show the number of recorded incidents almost doubled since 2014 reports the Local Democracy Reporter.
Between December 2014 and December 2023, recorded incidents of shoplifting went from almost 7,000 to over 13,000.
Roger Hirst has said the increases in reported cases of shoplifting have been largely driven by drug dependency – drug offences have risen from 2,870 in 2018 to 5,554 in 2023.
However, he highlighted a number of crackdowns that have seen a total of 146 people charged for multiple offices between May and July.
He said: “There is a link between drug dependency and shoplifting. And that has been the driver. Drug offences have risen enormously over the period.”
He added that work to target organised crime gangs through the specialist police team known as Project Pegasus was starting to have an impact.
Twenty-nine people were charged with a total of 79 counts of shoplifting in Essex during mid-June and the beginning of July.
The previous two weeks saw 50 arrests with 36 people subsequently charged with a total of 131 offences of shop theft and five of assault.
The two weeks before between May 20 to June 4 Essex Police secured 43 charges of shop theft against 22 people plus another four charges of assault against retail workers.
In the two weeks prior to that between May 6 and May 19, there were 112 charges of shop theft against 37 people plus another six charges of assault against retail workers.
And between May 1 and May 8 officers secured 91 charges of shop theft against 22 people plus another four charges of assault against retail workers.
Mr Hirst added “Shops want to welcome people in and they want their goods on display, they want people to feel they can get to them and see what they are buying and that makes them vulnerable to a level of pilfering and petty theft.
“The problem is in the last few years it’s gone way beyond that.
“This is organised crime by people who wish to fund a drug habit indeed fund a drug gang habit. And those are the people we are rolling up and if you look at the incidents we have been very successful – arresting 30 or 40 people in a week.”
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