A bizarre incident earlier this year made the news and hit a national nerve. A supermarket manager found himself in the headlines for just doing his job one day by stopping a thief from stealing. Believe it or not, this employee who had worked for the company for 29 years was sacked because he broke the supermarket’s policy of ‘deter and don’t detain’!
With that attitude, it’s little wonder that shoplifting is exploding across the nation. This particular crime is at the highest level in Britain since records began. Official figures say annual offences passed 500,000 for the first time last year. The retail industry believes the actual numbers are much higher because many thefts are simply not reported for fear that little will be done.
Because the consequences are so negligible, all manner of different groups have got in on the act. There are now TikTok accounts where young Brits challenge themselves to steal the most in a single visit. There are ‘steal-to-order’ organised gangs. Apparently shoplifting is now not only becoming acceptable but like a game to be played.
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