Shoplifters carrying lists, says Shropshire M&S manager
Lewis said she had seen the level of shoplifting increase and decrease in line with the cost of living, but added: “When there is a presence in the town, they are deterred.” Insp Ingrid Tozer, the West Mercia Police officer responsible for Shrewsbury town centre, said an increased police presence there was making a difference….
Lewis said she had seen the level of shoplifting increase and decrease in line with the cost of living, but added: “When there is a presence in the town, they are deterred.”
Insp Ingrid Tozer, the West Mercia Police officer responsible for Shrewsbury town centre, said an increased police presence there was making a difference.
Since October there have been six police officers and a sergeant based in the town, and she said incidents of shoplifting had fallen.
“The feedback has been fantastic,” she said, and the force believed it had issued criminal behaviour orders to the most prolific offenders.
But engaging traders has been a challenge.
PC Joseph Bradley, one of the police officers based in Shrewsbury, said: “We spent quite a bit of time trying to encourage the shops to report thefts into us.
“We went through a period when we weren’t necessarily getting a lot of reports in.”
He has worked in the town for 16 years and said he had spent a lot of time building up relationships with traders to make that happen.
That was backed up by Cath Harmer from Shrewsbury BID – a group that represents businesses in the town.
She is the Safer Shrewsbury coordinator, responsible for the Shrewsbury Rangers, external – a security team which patrols the streets, assisting shopkeepers and the police.
Harmer said: “There is a tendency for retailers to absorb that theft rather than reporting it,” and added she wanted to make sure they continued reporting crime.
