A working security guard has succinctly broken down Britain’s shoplifting epidemic as shops stay vigilant for potential thieves over Black Friday.
Britons have been told to keep their cool and respect shop workers as retailers observe Black Friday today (November 24), with the potential for violent incidents and shoplifting growing exponentially.
Recent interim figures from the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers (USDAW) have found that, during the period, union members experienced threats and violence, with six in ten incidents sparked by theft.
The rising incidents, the organisation concluded, were “clearly the result” of a 25 per cent recorded increase in shoplifting recorded by police.
A longtime security guard and bouncer has told how even he has been tempted to steal valuable stock and offered a fresh perspective on the shoplifting crisis.
Writing for The Guardian, security guard George Bass said he could understand what it is like “to be tempted by shelves full of premium goods that you’re never going to be able to afford”.
But he added he would never try, first because of memories of his mother – who marched him back into an electronics store after he snatched galvanised nails – and because he also knows how “counterproductive” shoplifting is.
He told how, some years ago, a man was caught after CCTV captured him stealing unattended laptops, leading to a quick arrest and eventual custodial sentence.
He warned shop owners that young people appear happier to appear on camera, making them easier to catch, while older thieves are more wily in their approaches.
Mr Bass said younger generations “grew up sharing selfies”, leading him to theorise that “being recorded isn’t intimidating to them”.
Older thieves tend to try and cover their tracks, he observed, and try to evade surveillance.
He said: “Older robbers are more wary: we filmed one bloke crowbarring vending machines who’d first obscure CCTV domes using toilet-roll paper mache.”
Older Britons are much more likely to shoplift than other age groups, data has shown.
Figures posted by Essex Police showed that, between 2019 and 2022, people aged 31 to 50 were responsible for 8,430 of 15,791 shoplifting incidents.
People aged 18 to 30 were responsible for the second most, 4,390, with Under 18s and those aged 51 to 70 just behind on 1,818 and 1,111 respectively.
