Can anything actually be done about prolific shoplifters?

[Cookie333]

I work in a well known food store ( one of the small branches) and I’m fed up to the back teeth of the same bloody shoplifters coming in, taking what they want and just walking or running out with absolutely no consequences for them.
I accept that shoplifting will never be eradicated, but surely the store can do something about the prolific shoplifters?

One example being a lowlife who steals on average about £500.00 worth of stock from our store alone in one month! Apparently ‘it’s not worth reporting him to the Police as they won’t be interested’ according to the Manager, but I’m not convinced nothing can be done, especially when the amount being stolen by one person alone is huge.

Does anyone know if some sort of banning order preventing them entering the store can be given to prolific thieves?

I saw a news article earlier about a man who is banned from a town centre for shoplifting so much.

No helpful ideas unfortunately. In our area they often just walk in to shops, take stuff, walk out. No attempt to hide it. But I was very impressed by the female store manager at our local boots loudly tearing a strip off a shoplifter until he left the store. It's not really a safe thing to do but in that case it worked.

You can apply (or the police can ) for a criminal behaviour order .
What used to be the old asbos.

Needs loads of evidence though and a committed cop.

My friend works in a superstore. She said something like you can’t call the police if less than £200 has been stolen. Security gathers evidence over a few weeks and once they’ve got a record of £200+ the police are called.

With what PP has said with all the effort of recording, giving evidence, paying staff wages just for a potential sentence of 4 weeks just shows how the system isn’t fit for purpose.

We need a complete overhaul of our justice system. Those who are addicts or repeat offenders need help or the cycle will just continue. However I quite like that in one US state if you’ve been in prison twice the third sentence is for life.

Of course you can call Police if the value is under £200. The answer here is more effective sentences, not necessarily longer or shorter ones. I work in criminal justice and a big problem is the amount of offenders who have absolutely no desire to stop using drugs. How we as a society are supposed to deal with that I don’t know.

Lamb is the most stolen meat, druggies on the estate I live on swap labels from cheaper meat, pay for the lamb with it & then sell it for cash to buy drugs. Security guards often have a policy that once the shoplifter is out of the shop they don't chase them, I once asked one why & he said the shoplifters operate in pairs, one steals something, the security guard gives chase & the other one steals what they both really wanted & gets away with it.