According to Scotland Yard’s own figures, fewer than one-third of reported shoplifting incidents using a new system result in cautions or convictions
Croydon’s high streets are to get new technology which allows the police to turn around CCTV footage of suspected shoplifting and use it as evidence to secure prosecutions more speedily.
Pick and mix: shops have vast collections of CCTV showing shoplifters in the act. But fewer than one-third of cases result in police action
A trial conducted in six other London boroughs has, according to the Met, “quadrupled the number of shoplifters being brought to justice in the capital”.
In fact, the “quadrupling” is really a relatively modest improvement in an area where usually petty criminals were rarely being prosecuted: up from an average of 7.3% before the new system was introduced to 29.4% of cases resulting in a caution (that is: no prosecution), charge or other criminal disposal, according to the Met’s own figures.
Independent shop-keepers and high street traders in Croydon remain sceptical about the new system, and wonder whether it will even be available to them. After years of relative inaction over high street crime, they see the new system as a form of “two-tier policing” that protects only bigger businesses.
Some Croydon business owners say that CCTV evidence submitted to the police after robberies and break-ins has been ignored and not acted upon. One business told Inside Croydon that they had their premises broken into three times, the perpetrator clearly captured on their own CCTV, but no arrests were ever made.
“All we got was a crime number, so we could replace the shattered window and stolen laptop on our own insurance,” the trader said.
Other independent businesses have questioned whether the new system will be available and used if their shops are victims of shoplifting, or whether only the large chain stores, or members of the Mayor Perry-backed Croydon BID, getting any benefit from the Met’s latest “clampdown” on retail crime.
The Met has itself referred to “subscribing retailers” being part of the trial scheme.
According to an announcement from Scotland Yard today, the system “lets retailers submit CCTV footage, witness statements and other evidence directly to officers, allowing them to track, arrest and build cases against offenders more quickly”.
Without offering any explanation for previous delays, the Met says, “Previously, officers might have had to wait up to 28 days or longer for CCTV and statements. Now they get that evidence in minutes.”
The Met says that the system is already being used by larger high street chains including Tesco, Boots, Marks and Spencer and Greggs.
The Met is now extending its roll-out to Croydon, Southwark, Lambeth, Sutton, Bromley and three other boroughs, following the trial in Bexley and Lewisham and elsewhere in the capital.
Cutting down on crime: Chief Inspector Rav Pathania
Chief Inspector Rav Pathania, the Met’s lead for business crime, said: “The results speak for themselves.
“This crime reporting technology is helping us identify offenders faster and bring more shoplifters to justice. By receiving CCTV footage and evidence directly from retailers at the point a crime is committed, we can build stronger cases and act more decisively.
“Tackling retail crime remains a top priority for the Met. Reported shoplifting offences across London are down by almost 4%, but we’re not taking our foot off the pedal as evidenced by this continued use of new tech.
“Shoplifters should be under no illusion – we are increasing our capability to catch you and put you before the courts.”
In the last financial year, reported shoplifting offences across London fell to around 3,500. Over the same period, the Met made almost 50% more arrests for retail crime, while the number of “positive outcomes” more than doubled from 2,682 to 5,996.
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