UK stores are purchasing stolen goods from professional shop thieves, who steal “to feed addiction problems,” retail groups have said.
According to the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS), its members have been reporting “a higher volume of theft”, most often targeting higher value items such as meat, cheese and alcohol, The Guardian reported.
Some businesses have reported seeing their stolen products being sold via Facebook or Whatsapp groups, or locally.
ACS chief executive James Lowman said that other businesses, particularly smaller stores, were purchasing stolen items, and that shoplifters were stealing to order, with buyers turning a blind eye as to the origin of the goods.
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Lowman told the title: “What we are seeing is a higher volume of theft from the same people who are professional shop thieves, often doing it to feed addiction problems.
“And how do they do that? Well, they resell the products. And so we think there probably is a stronger market for those resold products.
He added that it was an issue that the organisation has “been observing and talking about for the last couple of years”.
It comes as the number of shoplifting offences recorded by police in England and Wales hit its highest figure in 20 years.
According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), a total of 443,995 offences were reported by police in the year to March 2024, up 30% from the previous year’s figure.
Earlier this week, home secretary Yvette Cooper has pledged to “end the shameful neglect” of shoplifting by the police as punishments have plummeted over the past year.
According to The Times analysis of official figures from the Home Office, the Ministry of Justice and police forces, just 431 shoplifters were given fixed penalty notices – the lowest punishment used for theft of goods under £100 – in the year to March 2024.
