Sydney police Start operation against shoplifting Crime

Hiding among the bargain racks and the discount sections, they waited. In a secret mission worthy of a retail version of James Bond, police from Sydney's Redfern Regional Enforcement Squad led a special crack unit of top Aussie cops this month, on a shoplifting blitz across major Sydney retail centres.

The unit, working in shifts and liasing with Sydney's retail sector that has simply hit the wall in terms of dealing with a citywide shoplifting crisis, arrested 92 people and charged them with 117 separate offences during an overdue crackdown on shoplifting in the CBD regional centres.

Operation "Lightfingers" was rolled-out and carefully executed in two phases. Assisted by police from many of Sydney's major Local Area Commands and working in conjunction with "loss prevention staff" from a number of department stores, the Redfern team went on a crime-stopping spree over two weekends.

Shoplifting remains one of the most common crimes affecting small businesses in Australia.

According to the latest Small Business Crime Survey, more than one in five Australian businesses reported being the recurrent victims of shoplifting. To counter the sophisticated methods of seasoned shoplifters, the officers of the Redfern Region Enforcement Squad utilized a number of unorthodox stratagems and put out the net on the city's systemic property-theft.

The unit began rounding up shoplifters in Miranda, a Westfield retail complex in Sydney's south, the Sydney CBD and other key centres on May 5-7 and May 24-28.

It's estimated that shoplifting costs Australian businesses around 860 million U.S. dollars annually.

During the eight days of the operation, the Redfern Region Enforcement Squad officers, many in disguise and deployed in and around major shoplifting targets, nabbed 71 people and charged them with 91 offences.

"We are confident this operation will send a warning that shoplifting and unlawful behaviour will not be tolerated, and we will continue to run these types of operations in the future using both uniformed and plain-clothes police," A NSW police spokesman told Xinhua.

Police also recovered more than 30,000 U.S dollars in stolen goods during the blitz.

The arrests ranged from simple shoplifting to more elaborate and ambitious attempts, including a 28-year-old South Penrith man who allegedly stuffed 17 Polo Ralph Lauren shirts -- valued at 2, 300 U.S. dollars -- into a handbag before attempting to make a clean getaway. He was arrested by police upon leaving the store -- which, it was established, he was already banned from entering for stealing merchandise earlier in the month.

Redfern Region Enforcement Squad Commander, Detective Chief Inspector Stuart Bell, praised the retail sector for their eagerness to assist in the operation, reflecting the extent of the problem of shoplifting in Sydney.

"It's always pleasing to see police and the retail sector working hand-in-hand to stop shoplifters in their tracks," Detective Chief Inspector Bell said.

Chairman of the National Association of Retail Grocers of Australia (NARGA) John Cummings, told Xinhua that many retailers are at their wits-end and the public needs to become more aware of the cost of shoplifting to the country.

He said the total annual loss to shoplifting is as high as 1 percent of the nation's total retail turnover.

In 2011, the average Australian retail outlet will experience losses of between 2 and 12 percent of annual sales. "Thieves seeking to capitalise on opportunistic crime are under more scrutiny than ever, with both uniformed and undercover police patrolling stores across the state. We hope this type of operation will act as a deterrent to anyone thinking of indulging in this illegal behaviour," Detective Chief Inspector Bell said.

Until police manage to reign in the five-finger discounters, retailers will continue to take matters into their own hands.

A Sydney retailer has created a "wall of shame" that displays the photos of shoplifters for all customers and public to see. A spokesman from Direct Shoe Warehouse told Xinhua that shoplifting is now down and thieves are returning to pay for the shoes.

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