Retail offenders arrested as Operation Workforce continues

Shoplifters were firmly in the sights of police carrying out patrols and retailer engagement in Northampton’s town centre as Operation Workforce continues.

The second week of the operation saw officers make 11 arrests for retail crimes, with eight people going on to be charged, including one suspected of stealing more than £3,000 of goods.

The operation, launched on August 19, is being run by Northamptonshire Police to drive down crime in the regenerated Market Square area ahead of its official reopening later in the autumn.

It is focusing on improving police visibility and tackling anti-social behaviour, retail crime, drugs and serious violence in the area, following concerns from business owners and residents.

Northampton Neighbourhood Policing Inspector Nicola Davis-Lyons said: “We know how much retail crime is affecting businesses across the town centre, so this week we’ve worked hard to arrest and charge known offenders, as well as spread the word to businesses about the help and support we and partners can offer.

“The Force now has a dedicated Retail Crime Team which works to build evidence packages to enable us to bring charges promptly against repeat offenders, as well as give advice and help to firms.

“We had some great engagement with store staff and shoppers during the week and I’m really pleased with the positive feedback, as well as the constructive suggestions about future work too.”

During the week officers were also busy visiting stores suffering repeat shoplifting issues to engage with staff alongside colleagues from Northampton Town Centre BID.

Managers were offered crime prevention advice and information was shared about the Northamptonshire Business Crime Partnership’s retail crime initiative - https://www.retailcrime.org/.

Stores were also encouraged to join the Force’s relaunched Cops-Adopt-A-Shop scheme which matches businesses to named neighbourhood policing contacts, with 16 firms signing up.

Mark Mullen, operations manager at Northampton Town Centre BID, said: “We are delighted to see the real-life impact of Operation Workforce, which has seen business owners reassured by a greater police presence in our town centre and a feeling that their concerns are not just being listened to but acted upon. Retail crime is something that affects a high number of our town centre businesses so we are delighted to be working closely with Northamptonshire Police to tackle this issue head-on and we look forward to seeing more positive results in the weeks and months to come.

“This collective effort shows what can be achieved when organisations in Northampton work together for the good of the town and hopefully the success of Operation Workforce can be replicated in future multi-agency projects such as the reopening of the Market Square.”

During their patrols officers were also still on the lookout for anti-social behaviour issues, which were the focus of the operation’s first week. Several community protection warnings were issued which will enable action to be taken against repeat offenders.

Similarly, since the end of the week focusing on retail crime, at least four further arrests have been made for shop theft offences and one person has been charged with breaching a community behaviour order preventing them from being intoxicated in public.