Theft & Shoplifting

There is no typical shoplifter. People who steal from stores can be any age, race, gender and social and economic background.

Peer pressure is one of the reasons why people shoplift.

Shoplifters generally fall into two categories:

• Professional shoplifters
• Amateur or casual shoplifters.
  
  

Professional shoplifters are people who usually take expensive items, like memory cards that they can re-sell easily.

They may even steal ‘to order’.

Most shoplifters are amateur or casual who don’t usually go into a store with the intention of stealing.

They simply see the opportunity to take something and do, but shoplifting is stealing and you could be arrested and charged.

 

Getting caught

Getting caught shoplifting can be a lot more serious than people may think. Some of the things that can happen to shoplifters are:

• They may be arrested and paraded through a store full of customers
• They may face charges for theft
• They may be banned from stores or shopping centres
• Their parents will be called.
  
  

People who have been arrested for shoplifting – especially if it’s more than once, may end up with a criminal record.

This can make it harder to get a job.

Lots of teenagers find out the hard way that stores take shoplifting very seriously.