Experts provide crime prevention insights to retailers
RETAILERS were given crime prevention insights at an intelligence briefing hosted by Retailers Against Crime (RAC) in a bid to tackle the rising rates of retail crime in Scotland.
Experts from RAC, alongside members of Police Scotland, demonstrated methods and props used by thieves to evade security systems in stores and highlighted how they will often work in teams to achieve their goal, with offenders purposefully distracting staff while others steal goods.
Natasa Wilson, intelligence co-ordinator at RAC, said: “Retail crime and acts of violence are on the rise and getting worse – our aim is to detect and prevent crime and we are here to help you.
“We can provide you with the tools you need as a retailer or security personnel to tackle retail crime and I want to emphasise how working together in partnership is so important.”
The meeting was attended by staff from Edinburgh-based retailers in the capital’s Harvey Nichols store and emphasised the importance of businesses working together to stamp out the scourge of crime.
RAC highlighted the SentrySIS crime fighting tool, which allows users to share real-time information about thefts happening in their local area with fellow retailers as well as with members of the police.
During the event, Wilson demonstrated how the system can find out which criminals are currently active in the area, alert retailers to the latest crime incidents and access a database with information on more than 16,000 offenders.
She said: “We can provide added intelligence which you may not have come across about the different methods offenders use – the extreme lengths these people go to and the effort they put in to steal valuable stock from your stores.”
Shop workers at the event also heard about the detrimental impact the rise in retail crime has had on mental health.
The intelligence meeting comes after stats from the British Retail Consortium showed an average of 55,000 thefts take place in a day across the UK, marking an all-time high for the statistic.
PC Evelyn Hegarty, who was also at the event and works in Police Scotland’s crime prevention department in Edinburgh, said: “We are well aware of how much shoplifting has changed and increased in recent years – offenders are much more brazen now and not at all concerned about walking into shops to grab stock and threaten staff.
“We know the emotional impact that retail crime has on workers and there are staff who have left their jobs because they have been so traumatised.
“We know just how serious it is and we are trying to prevent it and what really helps us all is joint working and good communication.”
To highlight the need for action on this matter, RAC has teamed up with Police Scotland to launch an intensive Day of Action. This is set to take place in Edinburgh in June and is expected to result in arrests and a major crackdown on retail crime.
Stephanie Karté, national operations manager at RAC, said: “Shop workers are being met with violence on the job and putting up with a lot on a daily basis, while we all see an increase in prices and our bills going up because retailers face increased costs.
“We all need to work together because the impact of retail crime affects us all.”
