A security guard was stabbed by a needle after a thief tried to steal alcohol from a shop. It happened as police lifted the lid on a shoplifting epidemic.
West Midlands Police said seven people were being held in custody over shoplifting offences in the Black Country today, Sunday, April 14. The rate of shoplifting has hit its highest level for two decades nationally, with thefts from shops and stalls increasing by 32 per cent in the year to September 2023, the force said.
It said a 38-year-man was arrested yesterday after a security guard was stabbed with a needle at a superstore in Tipton by someone trying to steal alcohol. In a separate incident a man, 42, and a 28-year-old woman were in custody after staff at a shoe shop in Walsall town centre were threatened with a knife over the non-payment of a pair of trainers.
Police said a man attacked shop staff in a convenience store in West Bromwich on Tuesday, April 9, when challenged for taking meat without payment. He ran from the shop. A suspect was arrested by officers at his home this morning.
And a woman was seen on CCTV trying to make off without paying for goods at a store in Walsall. A suspect in that incident was found to be wanted for failing to attend a mandatory drug test.
Police said two others were a 60-year-old woman suspected of stealing £300-worth of cosmetics in Tipton and a 42-year-old man arrested in Birmingham the same day and thought to be linked to the theft of bedding from a store in Wolverhampton.
An upcoming bill in Parliament will see assaulting shop staff made a specific criminal offence. Under the proposed new law, perpetrators could be sent to prison for up to six months, receive an unlimited fine and be banned from going back to the shop where they committed their crimes, with criminal behaviour orders (CBOs) barring them visiting specific premises.
If they breach a CBO, they can be sentenced to five years in prison. For the most serious cases of assault, such as causing grievous bodily harm with intent, offenders could face a lengthy sentence.
Police said they understand the impact and frustration of shoplifting on businesses of all sizes. The force said teams were working closer together to prevent and tackle crimes which impacted communities.
Source – Birmingham Mail
