Cambs shoplifters being sent straight to prison as courts get tough

One in three convicted shoplifters is jailed by the courts in Cambridgeshire - as a new map shows the places in England and Wales where thieves are most and least likely to face prison time. Shoplifting in the UK is currently at its highest rate since records began, with the equivalent of around 900 incidents every hour, amounting to £1.8 billion worth of goods stolen in 2023.

New figures from the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) show that the courts are getting tougher with shoplifters. In the year ending June 2024, more than one in four convicted shoplifters (27.7 percent) were handed an immediate jail sentence.

That was the highest rate since available records began in 2010 - when just 16.9 percent of shoplifters, or about one in six, were sent to prison. On average, a convicted shoplifter will be ordered to serve just over two months in jail, a sentence which has remained fairly stable over the last five years.

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Average fines, meanwhile, have risen to the highest on record, up to £110. Shoplifters in Cambridgeshire, however, are more likely to face time behind bars.

The latest MoJ figures show that more than one in three shoplifters hauled before the courts in Cambridgeshire (34.6 percent) were handed an immediate custodial sentence. That’s the fourth-highest proportion of shoplifters sentenced to custody of every police force area in England and Wales.

Last year 575 sentences were handed out for shoplifting in Cambridgeshire. Shoplifters who did receive custody were sentenced to an average of 2.2 months in prison.

When a fine was handed out, the average amount was £118, which was higher than the national average.

You can see how Cambridgeshire compares with the rest of the country using our interactive map

The maximum sentence for shoplifting is seven years in prison - but only if the goods stolen are worth more than £200. If the value of goods stolen is below £200, the maximum sentence is six months in custody.

Other factors, such as harm to the business, shop workers, or customers and property damage, are likely to influence the sentence handed out by the courts. An offender is more likely to be sentenced to prison if they present a danger to the public or have a history of poor compliance with court orders.

They are less likely to be jailed if there is a reasonable chance of rehabilitation, or if there are other mitigating factors, such as demonstrating a determination to address their behaviour. It comes as Channel 4’s Dispatches exposes Britain’s shoplifting epidemic in an undercover investigation.

Reporter Matt Shea worked with private security teams and police to trace the origins of one of the shoplifting gangs behind the spike in offences. His investigation found evidence of a thriving black market for shoplifted goods in the UK.

Last year the police launched their Retail Crime Action plan, and the government has announced specific funding to tackle organised shoplifting crime.

Inspector Craig Flavell with Cambridgeshire Constabulary said: "Over the last 12 to 18 months we have put a lot of effort into driving down business-related crime such as shoplifting and assaults against staff.

"This work has included putting in place measures to support businesses in reporting crimes, which in turn then assists our investigations such as identifying suspects and gathering evidence to present to the courts.

"We have been using preventative tools such as applying to the courts for Criminal Behaviour Orders against prolific offenders to place restrictions on them with the aim of reducing their offending. Where these conditions have been breached, prison sentences have been handed out.

"We have worked alongside the National Business Crime Centre (NBCC) to hold days and weeks of action as part of their Safer Business Action campaign, which has seen intensification around engaging with businesses, prevention activity including increasing patrols in retail areas, and focussed enforcement.

"In Cambridge we have also seen the implementation of our Spree Offender Team. And in Peterborough we have appointed a dedicated police constable – PC James Cullimore - within the city centre Neighbourhood Policing Team, funded by the Business Improvement District (BID), specifically to support local businesses."