Police find huge haul of food, cosmetics and crockery in Vauxhall Zafira
A huge haul of stolen goods worth thousands of pounds has been discovered inside a car stopped by police in Kent.
Kent Police officers pulled over a Vauxhall Zafira on 6 April after it was spotted leaving the scene of a theft in Sevenoaks. A search of the vehicle found a total of 458 stolen items inside.
Among the items were M&S food, shampoo and pots and pans. Pictures showed the haul laid out on the floor of a garage and also included crockery, drinks, cosmetics, washing powder and sticker books.
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Kent Police said five people were in custody in connection with the find. Writing on X, Kent Roads Policing Unit (RPU) said: "How many stolen items can you fit in a Vauxhall Zafira? 458 it would seem! RPU 4 stopped this vehicle yesterday after it was seen leaving a theft in Sevenoaks.
“Searched and found to contain thousands of pounds of suspected stolen goods. Five in custody.”
Cost of living crisis sparking increase in shoplifting
With prices on basic food items increasing massively throughout the cost of living crisis, a rise in shoplifting has risen in parallel. Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) found that shoplifting offences recorded by police in England and Wales rose to the highest level in 20 years, surpassing figures seen before the COVID pandemic for the first time.
Some 402,482 offences were recorded in the year to September 2023, up nearly a third (32%) on 304,459 in the previous 12 months. It marked the first time since current records began in 2002/03 that the number recorded by police has risen higher than 400,000 and is above pre-pandemic levels, with the previous peak of 382,643 recorded in the year to March 2018.
A separate survey by the British Retail Consortium in 2023 found levels of shoplifting in 10 major cities had risen by an average of 27% compared with 2022. Meanwhile, the Co-op saw the highest ever levels of shoplifting last year, with more than 100 shop workers facing abuse from criminals every day.
Co-op said the level of retail crime incidents soared by 44% in 2023 compared with 2022. It recorded 336,270 incidents of shoplifting and anti-social behaviour at its food shops during the year, which is equivalent to 1,000 cases per day.
Despite the rise in shoplifting going alongside high food prices and increased inflation, policing minister Chris Philp said in January that it was not the main cause of the increased thefts. Blaming gangs and drugs, Philp told Sky News: "There really is no excuse for crime at all, including shoplifting... we've got a very generous benefits system of spending... the national minimum wage has just gone up.”
Shoplifting: What powers do the police have to stop theft 'epidemic'?
Anyone caught shoplifting can be charged with theft under section 1 of the Theft Act 1986; or, if the goods stolen are worth less than £200, for low-value shoplifting under section 176 of the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act. However, shoplifting does not automatically lead to a prison sentence.
The Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 states that for any shoplifting offence less than £200, it should be treated as a summary offence. This means someone caught would be given a penalty notice fine of just £70 – without the thief having to turn up at magistrates.
If the goods are worth less than £200, the maximum sentence is six months in prison, but this type of offence is usually dealt with a postal fine. Anything over £200 could lead to a maximum sentence of seven years in prison – but the sentence depends on the value of the good stolen and whether than offender has any previous convictions.
Shoplifters can also face civil penalties, such as being banned from the store or having to pay them compensation for any damage or loss caused.
The government is planning to pilot community sentencing measures with an as yet unnamed police force to tackle high levels of shoplifting, along with greater use of facial recognition technology to identify people wanted by the police in crowded areas. Judges already have the power to ban repeat offenders from certain shops under criminal behaviour orders, with breaches bringing a maximum sentence of five years.
