All posts tagged: shoplifting

The ‘neglected’ North London high street plagued by phone snatchings, shoplifting and knife crime

The ‘neglected’ North London high street plagued by phone snatchings, shoplifting and knife crime

“You cycle five minutes either side of Kilburn High Road and the area completely changes. We’ve been forgotten.” Omri Chetrit has run Folkies Music, a instrument store and repair workshop, since 2008. He’s a respected luthier, entrusted by stars such as Matty Healy, frontman of The 1975, and The Pretenders legend Chrissy Hynde, who come to him from across London. But these days, the 47-year-old finds himself becoming increasingly interrupted by crime right outside the well-established business. This is a sentiment shared along the high street, with residents complaining of constant phone snatchings, shop raids and stabbings. “I’ve seen three people robbed with my own eyes in the last few months,” Omri said, pointing at a bus stop opposite his shop, “These guys on scooters or electric motorbikes go on the pavement and then speed off. “If it’s not that, it’s Tesco staff getting abused and shoplifted from or drug addicts milling around. It’s happening on a daily basis.” Despite some concerns, Omri and staff members Thomas and Omer all love the ‘vibrancy’ of Kilburn …

Supermarket security guard slams ‘do not intervene’ shoplifting advice | UK | News

Supermarket security guard slams ‘do not intervene’ shoplifting advice | UK | News

Kane is a keen boxer and regularly practices self-defence (Image: SWNS) A security guard has spoken out about “out of control” shoplifting at supermarkets which he says costs the supermarket where he works at £4,000 a week. Kane Manning, 28, who has worked as a security guard for three years, believes staff should be doing more to tackle the crimes than union bosses currently advise. The Security Industry Federation (SIF) has instructed its members to observe, report, and act as expert witnesses for police, rather than physically intervening against theft. However, while Kane, from Brighton, agrees that staff should avoid placing themselves in danger, he feels passionately that challenging such behaviour is an integral part of their role. At the store where he is employed, goods worth as much as £2,000 are stolen over a weekend, and up to £400 on weekdays – with meat and baby formula among the most frequently targeted items. He receives up to three death threats a week, along with violent verbal abuse as many as 20 times daily, and …

Greggs makes major ‘behind the counter’ change in stores hit by ‘anti-social behaviour’ | UK | News

Greggs makes major ‘behind the counter’ change in stores hit by ‘anti-social behaviour’ | UK | News

Greggs has enforced a major change in a number of stores hit by higher incidents of anti-social behaviour. The chain of bakeries has announced that it has axed self-service displays in new “fortress” stores. This means that staff will hand over food and drink from a theft-proof counter, reports The Sun. The new change comes into effect at stores most affected by shoplifting. This includes West Croydon, Croydon, Peckham, Whitechapel, Upton Park, Birmingham and Wilford. The scheme might be expanded if it proves to work for both staff and customers. Greggs said in a statement: “This is one of a number of initiatives we are trialling across a very small number of shops which are exposed to higher levels of anti-social behaviour. “Customers can expect to see our full range of great value and tasty Greggs favourites available from behind the counter.” While Greggs has been subject to shoplifting in several of its UK locations, it continues to expand across the country. Recently, bosses revealed plans to introduce Greggs vending machines around the UK, allowing …

Major grocery store rolls out biometric surveillance to combat shoplifting

Major grocery store rolls out biometric surveillance to combat shoplifting

Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Wegmans is now using facial scanners to collect and store biometric data from grocery store shoppers, sparking privacy concerns among customers. The popular supermarket chain quietly rolled out the new surveillance software at stores with an “elevated risk” in what they called an effort to increase safety. Despite mandated signs placed at New York City store entrances announcing that the cameras inside scan faces and store information, shoppers are raising alarm bells over the surprise surveillance and dubbing it an invasion of privacy. “Why are they watching me?” shopper Deborah Tozzi asked The Independent during her grocery run Tuesday morning, adding that she would not have noticed the sign, which is off to the side of the automatic entrance doors. “Why would they want …

Facewatch: The controversial tech that retailers have deployed to tackle shoplifting and violence | Money News

Facewatch: The controversial tech that retailers have deployed to tackle shoplifting and violence | Money News

The Christmas period is upon us, and goods are flying off the shelves, but for some reason, the tills are not ringing as loudly as they should be. Across the country, the five-finger discount is being used with such frequency that retailers are taking action into their own hands. With concerns about the police response to shoplifting, many are now resorting to controversial facial recognition technology to catch culprits before they strike. Sainsbury’s, Budgens and Sports Direct are among the high-street businesses that have signed up to Facewatch, a cloud-based facial recognition security system that scans faces as they enter a store. Those images are then compared to a database of known offenders and, if a match is found, an alert is set off to warn the business that a shoplifter has entered the premises. It comes as official figures show shoplifting offences rose by 13% in the year to June, reaching almost 530,000 incidents. Figures reported in August showed more than 80% result in no charge. At the same time, retailers are reporting more …