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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Business
Sarah Butler

‘Some steal to order’: on the frontline of UK shoplifting epidemic

A hand putting an item inside a bag with a supermarket aisle in the background
Quite a few shoplifters don’t hide their behaviour as they know staff are not allowed to stop them. Photograph: AndreyPopov/Getty/iStockphoto

UK retailers are warning that crime in their stores is “spiralling out of control” with 55,000 thefts a day and violent and abusive incidents rising by 50% last year to 2,000 a day.

What is it like to be on the frontline? We speak to a supermarket worker, a security guard and an independent shopkeeper.

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