Police admit rise in shoplifting is 'really concerning'

Largs community councillor Frank Alexander raised the issue at a recent community council meeting, while the matter was also given an airing at the police sub committee meeting of North Ayrshire Council.

Sergeant Donald Fisher advised all businesses to continue to report any shopliftings, and said: "We can, and do, act on what we know about. It’s harder to act on what we don’t know about."

During the recording period of mid-January to mid-February, three shopliftings were reported at the Morrisons supermarket in Largs, and one at Tesco Express, where enquiries are continuing, while one shoplifting incident had been detected in Greggs.

Labour councillor Donald Reid told the local authority's police sub-committee that supermarkets in North Ayrshire had seen an increase in shoplifting, and voiced concerns at the committee that on some occasions, shops were not reporting the crimes to the police.

Councillor Reid said he had visited one supermarket where management told him some customers were using self-service tills but only paying for some of the items, while attempting to steal the others.

He also pointed to police advice to shop workers not to interact with potential shoplifters over safety concerns, and asked if shops were simply not reporting every incident.

Chief Inspector Fraser Normansell admitted that there had been a "significant increase in shoplifting in North Ayrshire" and pointed out there was a wider national picture with organised criminals at work.

He added: "We are seeing these individuals operating in our space and are actively taking measures to address that."

Chief Inspector Normansell said police had "repurposed town centre officers" to free up frontline officers to respond to shoplifting reports and to improve the capability for officers to review CCTV footage and witness statements.

CI Fraser Normansell (Image: North Ayrshire Council)

He said relocating some items frequently targeted by shoplifters away from the front of premises could have a positive effect, citing one example where a change in the location of vaping product had resulted in fewer thefts.

"Even a simple relocation of the stands can have a significant impact in preventing shopliftings," he said.

Chief Superintendent Raymond Higgins added that intelligence was being shared across Ayrshire and with neighbouring divisions.

He concluded: "It is a really concerning increase, but we will continue to work closely and have good relationships with supermarkets in the area to help them in addressing the issue."