Thefts from charity stores on the rise

St Vincent de Paul opportunity shop staff member Kate Houlihan (left) and manager Janette...
St Vincent de Paul opportunity shop staff member Kate Houlihan (left) and manager Janette Verheyen are sick of people stealing from the store. Photo: Daniel Birchfield
When people steal from charity stores they are  stealing from the community, an Oamaru charity shop owner says.

Over the past several months there has been an increase in the number of thefts from charity stores in the town, which means members of the community who rely on the proceeds from the stores miss out.

St Vincent de Paul opportunity shop manager Janette Verheyen said the most commonly targeted items included clothing and jewellery, but in recent times, for reasons she could not explain, thieves had targeted items with little monetary value.

"It’s really petty stuff. They’re stealing the plastic tags that have the sizes of the clothing written on them. It’s absolutely ludicrous. Everyone says why the heck would they want them? The same reason as us, I suppose."

She said people would often hide items before they came back to pocket them, and others left empty packaging in random places around the store.Oamaru Charity Shop owner Bonnie McLellan said she faced similar issues at her Coquet St charity store.

Like Ms Verheyen, she said instances of shoplifting had increased with time.

"Yes, it has. It’s always been a problem, but I think it’s got worse. We’ve got 12 cameras in the shop now due to the problem.

"They seem to be attracted to the new stuff, but we’ll find empty bags and boxes they hide things in and then come back. The cameras are quite handy and we catch a few."

She said many people stole for "the thrill of the chase" and were essentially stealing "from the community".

To combat shoplifting, Ms Verheyen made sure at least one staff member monitored the shop floor constantly.

Ms McLennan did the same thing at her store.

Sergeant Blair Wilkinson, of Oamaru, advised store staff to have their wits about them and employ security measures. He said visible staff, convex security mirrors and security cameras were effective ways to deter thieves.

daniel.birchfield@odt.co.nz 

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