Dorset Police news site

Officers in Bournemouth town centre are taking part in an operation to reduce retail crime and support businesses.

Operation Spotter, which involves increased activity throughout September 2024, is led by the neighbourhood policing team and involves dedicated officers carrying out targeted work in the area in plain clothes.

While out on patrol, officers are actively engaging with businesses to listen to their concerns and share information and advice.

The aim of Operation Spotter is to use proactive policing to catch shoplifters and consider the most appropriate outcome for immediate justice to reduce the impact on businesses.

Since the beginning of the month, officers have issued two section 35 dispersal notices, carried out nine stop and searches and five matters have been dealt with by community resolution.

Inspector Sophie Williams, of BCP neighbourhood policing, said: “We fully understand the harmful impact that shoplifting can have on local businesses and staff working within the premises and we have been working with the Police and Crime Commissioner and our partners to address the issue.

“By undertaking this operation, we are providing an enhanced policing presence in the area and working to strengthen our partnership with retailers, which we hope will lead to greater information sharing and a better understanding of retail crime in the town centre.

“We have looked at our intelligence so far and are carrying out targeted and focussed efforts to reduce crime.

“As well as our work as part of Operation Spotter, we are working closely with BCP Council and the CSAS officers, community safety partners and the Bournemouth Town Centre Business Improvement District (BID) to identify prolific shoplifters and theft hotspots. Op Shopkeeper is another operation ongoing in the area, which targets prolific shoplifters who are causing the most harm in our communities.

“We would strongly urge business owners, residents and visitors to the town who witness suspected shoplifting offences to report it to us as soon as possible.”

Dorset Police and Crime Commissioner David Sidwick said: “Shoplifting is not a victimless offence. From regular conversations with shop owners, I know and have seen the impact these crimes not only have on a company’s bottom line, but on the staff and communities criminals target.

“We have done a lot to tackle shoplifting in Dorset since 2021, I set up the Dorset Safer Business Partnership to bring the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC), Dorset Police and local business lead representatives and retailers together to fight business crime.

“The work of this partnership focuses on four key areas - crime prevention, crime reporting, engagement and visibility, cyber-crime and fraud. Dorset now has two Business Crime Reduction Partnerships (BCRP) and both were set up to prevent and deter crime.

“I am working with UK Partners Against Crime (UKPAC) and with funding from my office, UKPAC is offering up to 200 businesses outside of the Business Improvement Districts free membership for one year, to provide businesses with access to an incident reporting platform where incidents and threats can be logged, alerting members about updates on prolific repeat offenders in the area. This links with the work of the BCRPs to improve crime reporting and evidence provision into Dorset Police.

“The BCRPs gather and share intelligence among shops and pass on that information to Dorset Police and other stakeholders. I am determined to bring about further change to drive down offences, to ensure businesses have increased confidence in reporting incidents to the police. Fighting shoplifting requires collaboration and that is what we now have in Dorset.

“High police visibility and tackling prolific high harm offenders is proven to deter criminals seeking to steal and Dorset Police has had much success so far with Operation Shopkeeper, which targets high harm and prolific offenders.

“Dovetailing this with plain clothes officers on the streets as part of Operation Spotter is an effective way to catch thieves in the act. Let me be clear, those stealing from shops in Dorset will be caught and will face the consequences of their actions.”