Shopstealers Get Court
The well-dressed woman feels a secret thrill of anticipation as she casually looks first to her left where a shop assistant is tidying wares on a supermarket shelf, then to the right toward the checkout, making sure no-one is watching. Everyone seems occupied and she feels safe. So, unobserved except for a security camera in the ceiling, she selects a high-quality, expensive toothbrush and quickly places it into her handbag. She moves on, mission accomplished.
Happy with her deception, the rest of her shopping expedition is done at a leisurely pace. The items in her trolley are paid for at the checkout, plus she gets a cheery smile for the register operator.
Little does she realise that her life is about to change. To her respectable titles of wife, mother, daughter and best friend, she is about to add thief.
Shopstealers, once referred to as shoplifters—the name was changed because the word shoplifter came to be considered too trivial for the crime committed—come from all walks of life. A person’s wealth or status is no guarantee of their honesty.
There are no immunities—male and female, old and young, the professional and unemployed, wealthy, police officers and drug addicts. And most offenders are caught with enough cash on them to pay for the items they’ve stolen!
Many studies have been carried out to determine the psychological reasons why people steal. Despite the common excuses given for stealing—depression and attention-seeking—the most realistic is greed. The actual numbers of kleptomaniacs is very low, with less than 1 per cent falling into this category.
a family of thieves
A particular family establishes a routine. The mother picks up her children from school every day and takes them to their local supermarket once a week. She has a shopping list written out, so nothing is missed. She reverses her car into a space directly in front of the supermarket so she can get out easily with the minimum of fuss.
She sends her children in with the list to select the items they need. She doesn’t give them any money. This mother knows her children won’t be prosecuted if they’re caught because they’re under 18 years of age. If apprehended, they’ll receive a smack on the wrist in the form of a juvenile caution from the police. However, she’s trained them well and they’ve been caught only once.
Her older son, Jack, acts as lookout—the “cockatoo”—perhaps creating a distraction. Her nine-year old daughter conceals the items and returns with them—in time to prepare them for dinner.
Jack turned 18 recently. As a birthday present, he was given a court sentence after being apprehended for shopstealing. He also assaulted the shop assistant who assisted him back to the office. He was made to pay a fine plus court costs.
Jack was lucky, however. Because of his upbringing, a Juvenile Justice Team decided a liaison meeting with the shop assistant he’d injured might help. The meeting was to discuss how Jack’s aggressive actions made him feel; it could help Jack realise how his actions affect others psychologically. Time will tell if this exercise was beneficial.
Emily’s new friends
“If you want to be one of us, you have to take a packet of lollies. We pool them all behind the shops! Or are you gutless?” Emily had just started at a new school. The gang she was in was just so-o cool. She didn’t want to hang out with nerds. What could it hurt?
Her new friends reassured her they’d hang about to protect her while she hid the item. It was the price of acceptance. And who would know?
Emily discovered that the store manager knew. He also knew that the schoolchildren represented the bulk of shopstealing problems in their store. So he hired people just to watch them—before and after school. Emily couldn’t believe that now her new friends, acting as her lookout, were in just as much trouble as was she.
And when her mother was informed, she was mortified. She was in tears as she came to collect Emily. And Emily was no longer Daddy’s little girl. The manager also informed the principal of her new school. Emily’s friends were not quite so cool now. Mostly Emily had a lot of making up to do with the people she loved. That life lesson was tough enough for her not to do it again.
of cause and effect
Ironically, when a juvenile is apprehended, the security officer is usually doing them a great favour. If they steal without being detected, this can frequently lead to larger crimes, such as breaking into cars and homes.
When discovered, children are usually more fearful of the wrath of their parents than being dealt with by the police. And, on a positive note, most only have to be caught once and they’re so frightened and relieved as to never try it again.
Some shopstealers are middle-aged women who crave attention or are bored. They’re often well groomed, articulate and married to men with professional careers. Money problems are not an issue for them.
Julia was married to a detective of police, and she had a lot of time on her hands when her children were at school. Although her husband came home every night discussing his work, the stories weren’t enough to scare her into not shopstealing.
When she was apprehended and taken back to the store’s office, she was relieved her problem was finally being addressed. But her husband suffered more than she did because it became a public humiliation for him at work. Julia is now having counselling for her problem. She’s also divorced.
The frightening part of the shopstealing equation is that most first-time offenders don’t understand the implications of their actions. The “innocent” mother who took a toothbrush will have to face an unanticipated humiliation.
due process
Many businesses hire plain-clothes detectives to conduct undercover surveillance in their stores. From the time they witness an item being taken by someone, the offender will be watched discreetly until they leave the store. An offence is not committed until they attempt to leave.
The offender is then approached and asked to accompany the security officer back into the store’s office. Nine out of 10 times, the police are called. The police will often take a couple of hours to arrive, so an uncomfortable wait follows with no polite chitchat.
They are then charged. Even for taking a toothbrush. A fine could possibly follow, or maybe there’s a court case and an accompanying, uncomfortable police record.
Of course, it isn’t only customers who steal. It’s common for employers to be shocked to discover the culprit of internal theft is their hardest-working staff member and the one they believed to be the most loyal. The staff members believe what they put into the company (overtime and so on) makes them immune to prosecution—they “deserve” what they took as a form of payback.
A Perth, WA, security company, Perth Store Security, was called upon some time ago to attend a supermarket. The owner was concerned because even though business was good, his figures were reflecting a loss, not an anticipated profit.
After intensive exercises were conducted using plain-clothes detectives, the store manager and the contracted cleaner were arrested. Together they’d been stealing in the early hours of the morning while the owner was on the loading dock accepting deliveries. On many occasions, they filled five hessian sacks with cartons of cigarettes, then loaded them into a station wagon at the front entrance. They had a regular clientele for the stolen goods.
The two offenders were charged with stealing property valued in excess of $A100,000 over a long period. They were both sent to prison.
One thing the security company’s managing director won’t soon forget is the look on the store owner’s face when he learned it was his trusted manager, someone he’d considered a good friend and best man at his daughter’s wedding, who was the culprit running him broke.
Unfortunately, shopstealing is increasing. Professional shopstealers often have “shopping lists” and already have a buyer for items before they’re stolen. Although the majority of them are slick, some are still caught.
In order to minimise the problem, it’s imperative that retailers don’t show leniency when they discover a customer or employee has been stealing from them. Many offenders are convincing when they plead it was their first time, but they’re often adept at their craft. If they’re let go without the police being called, the word quickly gets around and very soon other thieves target the store.
Beyond appropriate surveillance and a high security presence, the best deterrent a store can have is to train its staff in good customer service. Sincere customers appreciate the attention and the thieves are more likely to go elsewhere.
protection against lightfingers
When a thief is apprehended and advised that the policy of the store is to call the police to prosecute, their attitude usually and immediately changes. Most find the experience traumatic, some undergo tremendous shame and guilt, and even go as far as to suggest suicide. Many will start to shake and cry and say how worried they are and that they don’t know why they did it.
The majority won’t want their family (especially their spouse) or friends to find out. Alternatively, some become violent and use abusive language. In most cases, offenders are not aware of the consequences of their actions.
But why do stores make it so easy for people to steal from them? Stealing from stores usually takes little effort from the offender, as merchandise is very often unprotected. A large sign telling the public that shopstealing is a crime is helpful but insufficient. Repeatedly, thieves say their actions were impulsive, and the stealing resulted because of the lack of staff or service.
The majority of shopstealers wouldn’t break in to your home, but think shopstealing isn’t a major crime. They view it as forgivable, because shopstealing is to be “expected” and that retailers allow for this, building it into their mark-up.
The great number of thieves caught think a retailer will not prosecute, and count on this. So a retailer should call the police and let them use their discretion. This sets a precedent for others contemplating stealing from the store.
Store policy should be not to caution a thief, but to call the police. Retailers should be serious and determined, no matter how sorry they may feel for the offender, as offenders will often seek sympathy in the hope the retailer will only caution them. Bribes may also be offered.
The attending police officer is the best person to make the decision. After hearing the facts, he or she will determine whether or not to caution or charge the offender.
if your child gets caught . . .
Don’t panic. It is very common for children to “give it a go” without thinking about the consequences. The initial rush can be exciting and something to brag about to their friends. However, when they’re caught, the experience can be turned to a great life lesson, if handled correctly by parents. Ask your child why they did it; there may be an underlying reason—attention seeking or peer-group pressure. If other children are involved, include their parents in the resololution.
The majority of juveniles steal before and after school—usually blocks of chocolate or confectionary, but older teenagers often take cosmetics. Many offenders attend private colleges. Girls will lift their skirts and put the stolen items in their underwear; boys in their socks.
At apprehensions, the security officer will call police and/or the juvenile’s parents to attend the store. A police officer may take the juvenile home to their parents to discuss how they believe the situation should be handled or the parents will meet the police and security officer at the store.
There is an exception to the rule, and in extreme cases where parents find themselves at the end of their tether, with their child continually offending, they can request the police to take the offender to the police station to have them charged or receive a juvenile caution.
The best way to halt this activity is to involve the child’s school principal. The subject is often addressed in school assemblies, which helps prevent other children following. If handled correctly, a child who has offended will be embarrassed and never steals again, growing up to be a fine citizen.
Remember, while this isn’t a pleasant experience, it’s also not uncommon (that doesn’t makes it right, of course), so don’t be discouraged; your child isn’t necessarily heading for a life of crime and jail.
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Articles of interest:
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This is an extract from October 2003
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