Police have been quizzed over an increase in shoplifting and how they are going to tackle the problem in the run up to Christmas.
Councillor Philip Saxton, Chair of South Ayrshire Council Service and Partnership Performance Panel, asked police about the issue at a meeting this week.
He said: “There’s an indication that shops are seeing increased shoplifting, and there’s going to be more, now that we’re in Christmas time, in the town centres.”
South Ayrshire Area Commander, Inspector Stuart Dougan, acknowledged the problem.
He said: “We’ve got an issue around the shoplifting, and have a couple of points that I am quite keen to highlight.
“So, we’ve got a really good intelligence network across South Ayrshire.
“It’s good in terms of tackling shoplifters and we’re working closely with the retailers, not just in the town centres, as you will appreciate some of the major retailers are outwith the town centres.
“We’re really keen to work, number one, to make sure that they’ve got the provisions in place.
“Number two, make sure we’re sharing information about what’s going on, we do research trends and share those trends with partners and retailers against crime.
“And number three is a real focus going into the next couple of weeks, going up to the festive period.”
He said that they want to see more officers in the town centre.
Insp Dougan said: “We’re making sure that the community knows that we’re out and about supporting retailers at what will be a busy time.
“And also just making sure that we’re in and about speaking to the retailers.”
Insp Dougan pointed out that the increase in shoplifting was not confined to South Ayrshire and that they had intelligence of the types of products being targeted by shoplifters.
This intelligence is then passed on to partners and businesses.
He added: “Our festive action plan starts in earnest next week.
“In terms of that, it’ll be a host of high visibility patrols through the town centres, making sure we are in the areas at the right times, to support the retailers with quick investigations and quick apprehensions when we need to take action in that space.”
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