SHOPLIFTERS' METHODS.

Press, Volume LX, Issue 18153, 16 August 1924, Page 6

SHOPLIFTERS' METHODS.

♦EXPERTS AND LEARNERS.' PRECAUTION'S IN MELBOURNE.

Enquiries made a few dayp ago at the large drapery establishments in Melbourne indicated that, though it i= au established fact that shoplifting is

carried out on an extensive scale, unv estimate of the value of goods lost in this way in a year -would be mere guesswork. AU concerned in the management of the large department stores agree that shoplifters come under two headings —the experts and the learners. By ingenious Methods, which arc the re:-."ilt of wide experience, the expert shoplifters manage to steal goods the value of which in the aggregate must reach a high iigure; the learners, because of their clumsy methods, ofreii bring disaster upon themselves. Special precautious to minimise thefts arc of course taken at all the large establishments, which, by the nature of their displays, offer opportunities and temptations, but notwithstanding the ri-rij supervision the experienced shoplifters succeed in removing large quantities of goods every year. At least three of the large establishments iu the city employ their own house detectives, men usually with police force experience, aud it is their business to decide what is to be done with the cases brought under their notice. The help of the counter hands and shopwalkers is of great value in detecting pilferers at work, and when one is caught " red-handed" it is usually the result of the vigilance of a watchful shop assistant.

Confidence in the Staffs. There have been eases in which members of the staffs have been known to co-operate with those whose business it is to get goods away from shops without paying for them. The managements, howevor, prefer to hope that such cases are not numerous. They have their own wtiy of dealing with these matters. Although some of the large establishments have several thousands of assistants, they are regarded with great eoniidenco by their employers. Certain precautions, however, hove to be taken, even where the staffs are concerned.-

Gloves, hosiery, handkerchiefs, and such small goods, attract most attention from shoplifted These goods arc usually displayed on stands in such a manner tlmt thej afford special opportunities to shoplifters. Women are the principal offenders, though cases in which men are concerned are not altogether rare. A small piece of protruding laco cr silk will often give a cl;i:) that leads'ir> the discovery of a theft. In one stcrc in Melbourne recently a woman was detained by a shopwalker on suspicion. She indignantly dectared that she was innocent, and that a piece of silk protruding from her coat was a handkerchief. The "handkerchief" proved to be several yards of fine-quality silk. Kitbags and such receptacles are usually viewed with suspicion. The lengths to which some shoplifters will go in carrying on their trade are illustrated by another recent example when two women and a child, with a large kithng, entered a busy store. While the two women examined tho contents of a stand the child wa? standing between thorn, busy sweeping the contents of a lower shelf into tho bag, when an assistant intervened.

Those Who Are Detained. TIIO3O who are detained accept their fate in various ways. Some are very indignant; some try "brazen" tactics; others beg to be allowed to pay for tho goods found in their possession; while tho expert pilferers usually accept discovery in a philosophic manner, as a part of the risk attaching to their calling. "When a "suspect" enters an establishment and is observed, the news is sent to every department, consequently the "suspect" has "very little opportunity of stealing goods. The problem of dealing with shoplifting is of a serious nature, as detection is difficult. One opinion expressed was that the amount spent in the precautions against thefts was more ■than tho value of tho poods recovered as a result of thoso precautions. Another manager qualified that comment by adding that the moral effect of tho knowledge that the large establishments were so constantly and thoroughly supervised was a very substantial deterrent. "Were the precautions not taken the value of goods stolen would probably be very much greater than it is at present.