Forum Topic

Shoplifting gangs

A friend of mine had the traumatic experience of witnessing them in Chiswick Hight Road. They were verbally abused and assaulted by them. They shop in question did absolutely nothing. It’s extremely infuriating.

Siobhan Smith ● 117d96 Comments

Also take control of borders means control immigration not stop itcompletely as is often stated.

Janice Evans ● 17d

Steve, Brexit was never going to stop the boats and cannot believe anyone thought it would.

Janice Evans ● 17d

“  No-one needs four or more kids with the world in the state it is at the moment and unlikely to change either for the better.”I have no problem with people having more than two kids if they can afford to have them without sucking off the State but I object to people breeding irresponsibly when they know they can never afford to feed and clothe them without sucking of the State and just ‘expecting’ the taxpayer to pay up.

Steve Taylor ● 17d

It will be interesting to see what happens when Sir Drear's party abolishes the two kids child benefit rule in order to keep their Muslim fringe/trade unions onside. No-one needs four or more kids with the world in the state it is at the moment and unlikely to change either for the better. The money saved would be better spent (at last) on social care to get older people out of a hospital bed when their care is finished. Not holding my breath on this one!

peter king ● 17d

I’m sure they were elderly people with no vision who historically have voted Labour and were concerned about all the ‘foreigners’ coming into the country and thought that Brexit would stop all immigration. Many were quite shocked when they realised Brexit would only stop EU citizens from coming to live here.

Steve Taylor ● 17d

Apparently most BREXIT voters were elderly ex Labour voters or did they get that wrong 😉

Janice Evans ● 17d

Thanks. I just can’t believe that Tesco staff didn’t press charges !

Steve Taylor ● 18d

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13820683/shoplifter-yells-Help-Tesco-staff-police-not-arrest.html

Richard Greenhough ● 18d

What happened ?

Steve Taylor ● 18d

I have just read what happened in Tesco in Wembley a few days days ago. Unbelievable!

Nicholas Beard ● 18d

The accusations about racism on this thread by Robert Fish is just just pathetic. Using the word ‘racism’ to try and slander someone is now just treated with contempt and used by out of date snowflakes. The UK is inherently a so called ‘racist’ country, and has been, for centuries. The English against the Scot’s, the English against the Welsh, Muslims against Jews, various Middle Eastern communities against each other etc etc.  Brexit confirmed 100% that the UK is ‘racist’. The fact is that the term has been used so ridiculously used over the last two decades that nobody takes it seriously. Nobody cares if you call them racist because it is used flippantly or to try to draw some sort of response. If so many Conservative voters are in fact ‘racist’ as  asserted by Robert’s best mate Campbell, and a couple of other morons, aren’t they now peeing their pants in the realisation that with the projected landslide win for the Labour Party, possibly a few million conservative voters will actually be voting labour. Do those fools now realise that the Labour Party will only win because all the those conservative racists will now join them. The fact of the matter is that there are millions of racists in the UK and there are NO racists in the UK because it is a word that has been so abused that it is meaningless. Playing the race card these days is just a joke and nobody takes it seriously. It’s people like Robert Fish who try to propagate the use of the word which renders it quite meaningless and why Europe is moving so far to the right politically. Because people just don’t care anymore about such slurs and it’s why people like Farage are just waiting in the wings in this country and they are, unfortunately, gaining more and more support every day.

Steve Taylor ● 102d

“ Don't think about coming back with the usual "playing the race card" retort.”I’ll come back with whatever I please, Bob. Who do you think you are? Some sort  control freak? You’ll have to wait though as I’m busy right now.

Steve Taylor ● 102d

Now you show your true racist colours, Steve. Don't think about coming back with the usual "playing the race card" retort. In its original deployment in the 60s it referred to comments designed to promote fear of black people, so as to gain votes (the most egregious example being Peter Griffith's use of the tactic to win Smethwick for the Conservatives in 1964: "If you want a nigger for a neighbour, vote Labour"). Now it's been turned on its head, and it's used to delegitimise the complaints of persons who are the targets of racist comments, or people who sympathise with them. The accusation of playing the race card these days is usually deployed by racists to silence criticism of racism.

Robert Fish ● 102d

“content myself with pointing out that you seem to be obsessed with people who "breed too much". It's not the first time you have expressed your contempt for them.”Well you go ahead and pleasure yourself with this fact, Robert, and I’ll go ahead with continuing to express by views on irresponsible people breeding too much. I fully accept that in some cultures the women are treated as sex slaves and the women have no say in the breeding. They fear for their lives if they don’t adhere to their husbands demands. My heart goes out to such women especially as the father plays little part in raising the children to acceptable living standards.

Steve Taylor ● 102d

Perhaps there is new evidence to bring to the nature/nurture debate. Epigenetics experiments with mice seem to suggest that lived experience and acquired knowledge can be passed on within one generation, by altering the shape of a particular gene. It is possible the same could hold true for humans. Studies in holocaust survivors and their children showed that the effects of parental trauma can be passed on in this way. One study showed that the children carried changes to a gene linked to levels of cortisol, the primary stress hormone. Another study showed epigenetic tags in PTSD-afflicted war zone-exposed combatants.

Robert Fish ● 102d

Steve,the 'nature v.nurture' debate still rages and will probably never be solved to everyone's satisfaction.Parental and behavioural cues are as much societal as genetic imo.The environment in which someone is reared has very significant influence on future behaviour.

Keith Iddon ● 102d

I'll ignore your customary rudeness, and content myself with pointing out that you seem to be obsessed with people who "breed too much". It's not the first time you have expressed your contempt for them.

Robert Fish ● 102d

You are confused about eugenics. It’s basic common sense I am talking about. Being responsible for your actions. But I guess with your warped nanny state mentality it’s too much for you to comprehend.

Steve Taylor ● 102d

“ parents are struggling with all the extra bureaucracy and low wages in this country now.”Wages have gone up quite dramatically but if parents are still struggling they should stop breeding!  It’s totally irresponsible to breed when you are pleading poverty and then expect everyone else to train your kids and become parents to them. Teachers aren’t prepared to put up with it anymore. That’s not what they studied for years and years to do.

Steve Taylor ● 102d

He's been at the Bertrand Russell again.

Keith Iddon ● 102d

"Irresponsible people continue to breed". Eugenics, anyone?

Robert Fish ● 103d

https://amp.theguardian.com/society/article/2024/jun/17/teachers-gps-staggering-extra-demands-poverty-great-britainYes, their parents are struggling with all the extra bureaucracy and low wages in this country now.

Philippa Bond ● 103d

Yep. Irresponsible people continue to breed when they are incapable of basic parenting. It’s shocking. During Covid many children lost the ability to eat properly with a knife and fork because they didn’t have a teacher to remind them. Useless, useless parents. Only in the UK !!! The NANNY STATE. Little wonder that teaches are leaving the profession in droves yet somehow the Labour Party thinks they will be able to find 6500 new teachers.  They are either delusional or unadulterated liars.

Steve Taylor ● 103d

And here's another aspect to the "useless parents" accusation.  (Remember  - people in glass houses should never throw stones!)https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cd1ddegp8zvo.ampYou can thank your lucky stars if you are a parent or teacher and have not been in the same position over the last few years or are now. 

Philippa Bond ● 104d

Predictive txt. Should be ill gotten gains.  So in effect the looting is done by illegal immigrants under control of criminal gangs who fly their members in to collect the loot and fly out again - job done. No law and order in the UK so the criminals can get away with it.

Steve Taylor ● 105d

Interestingly there was a piece on ch4 news tonight on how criminal gangs abroad see the UK as a soft touch free for all for shoplifting. According to the program it’s quite lucrative for them to fly in for the day, do a whole lot of shoplifting and fly the same day with their I’ll gotten gains.

Steve Taylor ● 105d

I wonder if the gangs that facilitate all this migration have job boards? Something like - 'Deliveroo gig, free healthcare, free housing, education for your kids, a local place of worship, and the freedom to do whatever you like before you return home with a few quid in the pocket'.

Emma Elizabeth ● 105d

Yes both. Physical and verbal abuse.

Siobhan Devon ● 105d

Yes. I have and do, as did my friendAs happened here, that’s what prompted this topi. Confronting shoplifters while they walked out with stolen goods.

Siobhan Devon ● 105d

“ but most work long hours for cash at below minimum wage. When you order your Deliveroo, get your car washed or eat a salad they may actually be your victim not the other way round.”I don’t see them as victims if they’ve come here of their own free will with the intention of melting into the black economy and no intention of paying any taxes. And, as there is no prosecution of shoplifters it stands to reason that they can shoplift with impunity. Many of them come from countries where their  hands would be amputated for shoplifting.

Steve Taylor ● 105d

So,they were no different in essence to any other invading army anywhere else anytime in history.

Keith Iddon ● 105d

Nobody with even the most superficial knowledge of the period believes the Normans were anything other than a violent and rapacious military elite. They killed most of the English aristocracy and appropriated the lands of the rest. They built castles across the country to terrify and oppress the peasantry and killed a huge proportion of the population of the north.Some of their descendants like Philippa have gone on to make a useful contribution to our society but many of them are now in the House of Lords.As for illegal immigrants pillaging, an attempt has been made to explain to you why this is unlikely. With no recourse to public funds they are open to exploitation and abuse. Perhaps some do turn to some sort of criminality but most work long hours for cash at below minimum wage. When you order your Deliveroo, get your car washed or eat a salad they may actually be your victim not the other way round.

Jeremy Parkinson ● 105d

You are making that analogy,not me.

Keith Iddon ● 105d

So why would anyone think that illegal immigrants won’t pillage?

Steve Taylor ● 106d

History tells us that any country that takes the trouble to conquer another hasn't done so just to shake hands with the vanquished.War is robbery with violence on a huge scale.

Keith Iddon ● 106d

Ah yes. And the jury is still out on whether the Normans were violent pillagers or gentle agriculturalists. Historians ponder. However it is widely accepted that most invaders do in fact pillage.

Steve Taylor ● 106d

Most of the tax contribution will be employer's NICs which is unavoidable if you have staff. In 2022 Amazon paid no corporation tax on a £222 million profit in its main UK division and claimed back investment tax credits from the government.The only way for shops on Chiswick High Road to avoid corporation tax is to make a loss and many owners of small retail businesses pay themselves through dividends so if they are not paying tax they are not earning.In addition they have to pay business rates for their premises which, in Chiswick, are very high.In fact the UK government actually gave Amazon money last year: £7.7m in tax credits for making investments in infrastructure, which they likely would have made anyway.Remember its not just Amazon, companies like Deliveroo and Uber Eats which also pay no corporation tax and very little business rates are expanding their operations in the area.Despite this unfair competition and the residual negative impact of Covid there are dozens of really great independent shops, cafes and restaurants on Chiswick High Road. They are supported by a loyal customer base who value the quality of service or product they offer. If your buying choices are different, that's your prerogative but don't make up things about a high road which, by your own admission, you don't visit.

Francis Rowe ● 106d

Why would immigrants of whatever kind have anything to do with it whatsoever more than anyone else?  There have always been immigrants.  Have you done your family tree?  This country is made up of immigrants!  Some of mine came over with the Normans.  It was even easier much earlier than that when as you didn't even need to get on a boat to get here when we were joined to the continent!

Philippa Bond ● 106d

Illegal immigrants + legal migrants + useless parents + light policing + cultural demise = theft on the up

Emma Elizabeth ● 106d

“ Amazon paid £781m in total taxes in the UK, including business rates, employer's national insurance contributions and corporation tax, up from £648m a year before.31 May 2023”

Steve Taylor ● 106d

As no state in the world has managed to make Amazon pay a fair rate of tax, you may ponder that this just might be impossible. The point remains that you can't demand high quality public services and then make buying choices that deprives both local and national government of the means to provide them.I'm no fan of the cycle lane but it is utter bullocks to say that it has led to no parking availability on the High Road or that it isn't used. There were very few spaces, that were usuable during trading hours lost to Cycleway 9 and there is ample parking off the High Road including two hours free at Sainsbury's. The High Road is generally buzzing when I visit so most people haven't given up on it.

Francis Rowe ● 106d

"with a multi-national company that pays little or no tax and not with local retailers that do"It's up to the State to close all loopholes for tax avoidance. Shopping with Amazon is a pleasure. Shopping with local retailers isn't. Half the time they don't have sufficient stock and of course these days there is no High Street Parking because it's been taken over by unused cycle lanes. Most people have given up trying!

Steve Taylor ● 106d

Ditto that,Francis.

Keith Iddon ● 106d

Do you not think there might be a connection with you spending your money with a multi-national company that pays little or no tax and not with local retailers that do and the state's inability to properly fund our police?

Francis Rowe ● 107d

The claim defies logic. If you are here illegally with no recourse to public funds there is no little other option to work in the black economy. This means long and grinding hours as a delivery rider, working in a cash only car wash or picking fruit. The idea that you would do this at the same time as having a serious drug addiction issue is preposterous. It is also unlikely that if you turned to crime to supplement your income, you would chose one which gave you a high chance of getting caught.If you really want to get an insight into the nature of this problem, have a chat to a local business owner or talk to a police officer on the High Road. (Don't tell me you can't find one, Cheryl is a near constant presence!). Or just stick to lazy tropes about immigrants being responsible for everything bad - nobody sensible is convinced.

Jeremy Parkinson ● 107d

Evidence for your claim?

Stewart Jones ● 107d

Indeed High Street shopping in store has become a total pain. Hence the Amazon success story. What a pleasure!

Steve Taylor ● 107d

Going over to self-service tills in has meant that we have visited less as has finding it difficult to find any assistant to open locked cupboards and multibuy prices for loyaly card holders only.  Cutting staff (or is it an inability to hire and retain staff) surely must have an effect on security?  It has made shopping more tiresome.

Philippa Bond ● 107d

“ ID cards. Most of the rest of Europe has them and doesn't have the scale of illegal working that we do.”Totally agree.

Steve Taylor ● 107d

“Illegal' migrants don't generally shoplift, if caught their immigration status would be checked and they would risk being removed from the country”Disagree!  The illegal immigrants who shoplift aren’t those who have any sort of ‘immigration status’ to worry about. They are those who came here illegally and slipped away into the black economy.

Steve Taylor ● 107d

Iswould imagine that since the economic mess we are in reared its ugly head, there are some who are struggling more than us forumers who have turned to the odd bit of shoplifting to ease their plight.

Keith Iddon ● 107d

The jury's out I think.

Keith Iddon ● 107d

Home Office figures suggest that over 70% of shoplifting is carried out by people with addiction issues. This seems to be confirmed by what local shop keepers say and news reports of the occasional conviction.Logic suggests that people in this country are unlikely to be illegal immigrants and seriously addicted to drugs. Whatever you say, people who are here without leave to remain would not want to attract the attention of the authorities and being a drug addict almost guarantees you will be. An addict would have to leave their source of supply to come to this country which they are unlikely to do.I'm not arguing that people here illegally are not likely to be involved in some sort of additional criminality and there is good evidence that in areas such as pickpocketing in the West End, they are a significant proportion of perpatrators. Shoplifting however appears to be a native born problem.

Jeremy Parkinson ● 107d

Sadly, although not Chiswick, the large Boots store in Greenford, the largest pharmacy in the area, has pulled down the shutters and closed citing the sheer volume of stock theft, despite in-store security, as on of the main reasons behind their decision.

N V Brooks ● 107d

I am not pointing the finger at illegal imigrants in this as I have no idea whether they shoplift or not,but the idea that they will even be caught and held to account is laughable.Jeremy,do you have any data about their shoppibg/shoplifting habits or was statement you made an assumption?

Keith Iddon ● 107d

Sam, would it be better if we returned to the old ways wheneverything was behind a counter or out of reach or simply locked insidecabinets again to make it harder for them to take from you.

Janice Evans ● 107d

Yes that's correct. Shoplifting is a low yield, high risk crime. You are only going to do it out of desperation. The real criminals are those that tell addicts what to steal and pay them a small amount for what they take.

Jeremy Parkinson ● 107d

I always understood that most of the shoplifting was done to fund a drugs habit.  There are lots of aspects of our social services that need better funding.  We would then have more people able to work and pay tax (if they can find suitable jobs). There are nothing like enough care workers available to fill the places in care homes let alone working going from home to home. If there were more of those then it would be easier and quicker for people to leave and stay out of hospital.

Philippa Bond ● 108d

There seems to be a confusion here between two different problems. 'Illegal' migrants don't generally shoplift, if caught their immigration status would be checked and they would risk being removed from the country. Shoplifters tend to be addicts for whom arrest is an occupational hazard and will be more likely to be native born and known to the authorities.The answer to the shoplifting problem is more funding for drug addiction programmes combined with an increase in prison capacity so that the court system has greater leeway to give custodial sentences when appropriate.The answer to people coming to this country to work in the black economy is ID cards. Most of the rest of Europe has them and doesn't have the scale of illegal working that we do.

Jeremy Parkinson ● 108d

Cheap is often not as cheap as it immediately appears is it?  It often costs a lot more as you end up having to pay in other ways.  Unfortunately too many people can't see or don't look further than their own nose.

Philippa Bond ● 108d

A lot of folk working in London don’t pay taxes (cash in hand and then back to country of origin) yet they use our public services (NHS, schools, etc). Perhaps think twice before paying your builder or plumber in cash, or accept you’re part of the problem of insufficient budget for policing - that plus ineffective border controls on macro level and weak authority at local level (insufficient deterrents)…

Emma Elizabeth ● 112d

And that’s wrong on so many levels because our gangs are putting the money back into our economy whilst the foreign gangs are sending it abroad to finance their people smuggling operations in France no doubt.

Steve Taylor ● 112d

Probably, and taking vital jobs away from our own gangs.

Mark Frost ● 112d

Sam,out of interest what is your policy on your employees challenging shoplifters? Are they required to challenge them as part of your contract with them?

Stewart Jones ● 112d

Are these gangs run by foreigners?

Steve Taylor ● 112d

Felicity- that was a very kind posting and my team who have experienced this, are all very grateful. As you say theft like this is very damaging for small business

Sam Harrison ● 112d

You may need to negotiate with the gangs already running them locally (according to a contact who works undercover for HMRC).  Good luck with that.

N V Brooks ● 112d

As a student I worked in a number of shops and theft was a regular occurence. We were advised not to challenge the shoplifters as the large chain that employed us saw it as a cost of doing business. When thieves did raid the store I still found it very upsetting even though I had little or no engagement with them. It seems to me beyond belief that anybody could quibble that being threatened by criminals would be anything other than traumatic. The tactics of the police seem to be predicated on all businesses seeing theft as a cost of businesses but I'm sure it can be devastating for smaller operations and for owner managers it will be impossible to depersonalise the act. The police should treat theft from small businesses as the same as any thefts from an individual.

Felicity Caborn ● 112d

if anyone wants to start a protection racket...I'll pay cash.

Roland Bolowski ● 113d

What’s the point of body cams or CCTV if the police are totally disinterested in pursuing the villains?

Steve Taylor ● 114d

Sadly, in the near future I expect all staff in retail and restaurants will be wearing body cameras all day (in addition to CCTV) to ensure that all interactions with the public have both video and audio recordings.Shoplifting and dine-n-dash criminals will not stop until there are criminal consequences and that requires conclusive evidence

Justin Stephenson ● 114d

I picked this up on Cityam today. Maybe that's the answer. A dedicated police team for each area.Copy and paste please if you can't open the linkhttps://www.cityam.com/watch-serial-e-bike-phone-snatcher-nicked-outside-the-ned-after-dramatic-police-chase-from-city-cops/

Katrina Black ● 114d

And things are about to get worse.The met commisioner said yesterday or the day before that they dont have the resources. Its not down to goverment and money but the job itself.Record numbers of police are leaving as its a job they no longer wish to persue as its not what they signed up for while fewer people no longer want to work in the police force as a career.Id say a lot comes from the idea of those at the top and the way they see how policing should be.I think we have many joining the police service only to find out it no longer is a job in policing day to day issues but the woke agenda some at the top now push in the modern era of policing .Many are likely to turn out to be good cops in time but are not being allowed to do what we know as policing so decide to leave.Its that old fashion way. Just turn up and nick them and let the rest of the system do its job to. Surely we are not still in the era of paperwork and convincing someone in a email or over the phone that its worth going to court. It most likely is.

Julian Pavey ● 114d

The police didn’t seem to be short of resources when sending about 8 officers and 4 emergency vehicles when a Uber scooter / motorcycle rider  with L plates was knocked over by a car when he was allegedly dodging in and out of the cycle lane into traffic!!!

Steve Taylor ● 114d

I find it a bit glib of the police to keep saying 'we have no time or resources'but I suppose that's going to be the future.They should publicly say that they are no longer fit for purpose,unless your crime is one that needs minimal input from them(like motor vehicle offences) or violent or organised crime.The rest of us will just have to put up with it,after all where else can you go for justice?

Keith Iddon ● 114d

Hi RichardAll Licenced Premises have to have CCTV as part of their Licence Conditions. But the police dont have the time or resources to do anything with the footage. Also they generally know who the gangs/ individuals are- they are repeat offendersRecently it seems to be more and more homelessWithout police presence on the streets, there is no consequence for the theft or attempted theft

Sam Harrison ● 115d

Sam - have you installed CCTV so that you could notify the police with pictures of the thieves ?

Richard Greenhough ● 115d

Dear allAs someone who owns and operates shops/ cafes in Chiswick, Brentford and Hammersmith, I find some of these comments rather disturbing and I am afraid showing a complete lack of understanding.  My teams have to deal with potential theft/ gangs/ walk outs on almost a daily basis.I can assure this can be very threatening and traumatic for my team. The lady who runs my Hammersmith shop is still mentally recovering from 2 gentleman threatening her 2 weeks ago and then taking £600 of stock from our shelves.Recently I personally tried to stop someone stealing a bag of coffee beans from my Chiswick cafe- the lady said "let me go or I will hurt you"- She went for her pockets and I have no idea what she was going to bring out......so I said "please just take the bag"I have spoken about this before but these are very desperate times for a lot of people and there is zero police presence and therefor no consequence for shop liftingVery sad but trueSam of Sam's Kitchen and Sam's Larderps if anyone wants to come and work a shift with us, please let me know :)

Sam Harrison ● 115d

“ friend of mine had the traumatic experience of witnessing them in Chiswick Hight Road. They were verbally abused and assaulted by them. ”Were they foreigners?

Steve Taylor ● 115d

Stewart, if you don't think being abused and assaulted by a gang of thieves would be traumatic, I'd assume nothing of this nature has ever happened to you.

Anita Blake ● 115d

Stuart's menswear shop in Shepherd's Bush has had doorbell entry for years.Very good menswear shop btw.

Keith Iddon ● 115d

Since the police are now rarer than hens teeth, you never see police boots on the ground anymore.

Elizabeth Whittington ● 115d

Instead of just accepting that these things happen, shops should be more creative and imaginative in the display and arrangement of the expensive goods.Dummy boxes which are exchanged for the real thing at the till.  Theft is costing a fortune so why not spend more on staff supporting those who are genuine customers.  I went to enter a dress shop on the High Road and suddenly realised that I had to ring a bell for entrance.  I did not mind and appreciated that they were making an effort to do something about the high level of thieving.

Elizabeth Ross ● 116d

Traumatic?Unpleasant but traumatic?

Stewart Jones ● 116d

A shop security friend of ours once explained that it wasn’t that easy because, even if he knew the regular suspects, all he could do was watch them as, a) he had to let them leave the shop or they could say they were going to pay or put the goods back, and b) once he did restrain them outside he had to grapple them into the back of the shop and wait for the police, which could take some time. I remember an old newsreel about the first self-service store explaining that you could help yourself to things off the shelves. What a ludicrous idea!  All end in trouble!  Just a way of cutting staff!  And so it’s turned out, with us now expected to work the checkouts and the tills ourselves!

Peter Evans ● 116d

It would be good if the police tried a stint of covert shop security.Are they really that busy, or short of imagination?

Denis Ian Fox ● 116d

The reason why Boots did and does not challenge shoplifters, is a female security guard was punched in the face not so long ago. Easy to point the finger.  If a security guard is attacked, then why should retail staff get involved?Would you challenge a shoplifter, Siobhan?

Elle Jones ● 116d

Used to be fags in pubs when I was a teenager (no, I didn't take part). Life is so much easier with WhatsApp and Facebook.

Guy Lambert ● 116d

There is obviously a market for what is stolen in such bulk.  I've heard they are sometimes stolen to order and offered on WhatsApp groups.  Who has no conscience in buying cheap (but stolen) goods?

Philippa Bond ● 116d

What can security do.They can only use reasonable force with a good reason to detain and search which does not work if the shoplifter becomes violent. And most police forces will only  investigate shoplifting if violence is involved in most cases. Which in a nutshell means the shoplifter gets away most of the time. And all they have to do in some cases is drop the goods and leave and try elsewhere and the case is closed for all involved.

Julian Pavey ● 116d

Not paid enough to risk being stabbed to death

Iris Hill ● 116d

Boots do seem to have an extraordinarily ‘relaxed’ attitude to blatant theft.  My daughter in law was in there recently when a young man walked in, took a wire basket and proceeded to take armfuls of expensive beauty products and leave without being challenged.  I can totally understand that the counter staff should not have to deal with shoplifters but where is the security?

Sarah Bucknill ● 117d

I’m glad.Boots did absolutely nothing. Maybe they didn’t have any security at the time but they should have, especially on a busy weekend. I can understand the dilemma for smaller or independent businesses. But big national / international chains like Boots have no excuse.It was the complete lack of interest in that was so infuriating.

Siobhan Smith ● 117d

I was in Marks & Spencer yesterday & a man who had been trying to bag a few bottles of whiskey was escorted out of the shop by the scruff of his neck by the security guard.  He was obviously known to the staff.  It is not true that people can pocket what they want & walk out without being challenged!

Elizabeth Fisher ● 117d

Didn’t know that about M&S. ShockingThe gang of women literally cleared shelves of pricey skincare from Boots. Must have been a couple of thousand pounds worth. Just waltzed out with bags for life of stolen goods as the staff just shrugged as the alarm went off. Not even a question of  where’s your receipt. Of course we end up paying for this in price hikes.

Siobhan Smith ● 117d

Yes it's very annoying.These gangs, or a single person,can walk into Marks and Spencers in Chiswick, pocket what they want and walk out without being challenged by any of the Staff.I believe that's official Company policy.A crazy state of affairs indeed.

Jim Lawes ● 117d