The cooperation between the police and the retailer brings up organized crime groups | Association of the police and crime commissioners

A national policing intelligence unit, which was set up in collaboration with single dealers to combat organized retail crime, was one year (May 1st) and continues

• The National Intelligence Unit sees 148 arrests in the first year of operation
• 50% reduction of the insult by organized crime groups identified
• Retailers praise the team's commitment to influence the results of the criminal justice

The team in the CC Amanda Blakeman and PCC Katy Bourne financed and collects and develops information about organized retail obligations of retailers and police forces from the Home Office and the Pegasus Partnership (a collaboration between retailers and police stays) and the team in Opal (Policing's National Intelligence Unit for serious organized employment crime).

Since May 1, 2024, the team has received 153 recommendations from retailers and police forces across England and Wales with 313 perpetrators and 105 linked vehicles that were identified as a result. According to a transfer, measures taken can range from the simple identification of a single or a vehicle to the complex examination of an organized criminal network. 37 operations were made from transfers with a total of almost 5,000 crimes across the country (4,710) with 148 arrests and 33 court results that lead to custody penalty and deportations in which the criminals are foreign nationals and 33 court results.

The organized crime groups, which were identified and monitored in the work of Opal, has been reduced by 50 percent of the crimes since May 1, 2024, which shows a clear influence on the disturbance of these high claims.

The Pegasus partnership was founded in October 2023 to bring police work and retailers together to combat the shop theft through improved information exchange, proven practice and upskiming. Include a number of top -class beliefs; Three criminals who were brought to trial for over 100 crimes by Surrey Police and OPAL, a person who were working across the country with more than £ 50,000 steel, which the South Wales police examined, and a perpetrator who worked in 16 police areas with high -quality electricity and perfumes that were convicted by Devon and Cornwall police.

Chef Constable Amanda Blakeman is the main manager of the national police chief for volume crime. She said:

“Partnership and cooperation are of crucial importance in our fight against retail crime. The police cannot do this alone, and Pegasus has built up strong relationships and information exchange, which enables us to aim at resources where they are most urgently needed.

“Without the national secret service coordination of the highly qualified team of Opal, many of these perpetrators who were put on trial last year may never have been identified or at least the large selection of their crimes may not have been identified. In many cases, the selection and level of insult to the most important court results are led.

“I would like to thank the retailers and the government for their commitment to the partnership that they clearly have success, and we look forward to that our collective effects continue.”

Jason Towse, Managing Director of Business Services at Mitie, said:

“We are proud to have supported Pegasus formation, and although the results are only one year, the results are overwhelming. Technology and cooperation concludes Pegasus to the points between retailers and the police in order to achieve the appropriate results for offenders and to capture more secure communities throughout the Great Britain.

“The financial effects of retail crime are only part of the puzzle and the numbers show the psychological effects of the current situation on workers, many of whom threatens due to attacks. The flood must turn, and this can only be done through effective data exchange agreements between retailers, security and police, which leave violent criminal, leave violent criminals that can be hidden.”

Katy Bourne is Sussex Police & Crime Commissioner and APCC Joint Lead for economic and retail crime. She said:

“It was very clear that retailers in industrialft and the necessary results suffer, including a better method to exchange information and intelligence with police forces at national level. For this reason, I convened our Pegasus partnership -a unique cooperation between the top retailers of the country, which was together to finance a special team. 150 Criminals. placed.

“I would like to recognize the support of Chief Constable Blakeman and the opal team in the galvanization of a national reaction from the police. The opal team has exceeded the expectations of our Pegasus partnership, and the retailers have seen their investment return valuable results against organized retail crime groups and persistent offenders.

“If we look ahead, it is obvious that we have built up a well -positioned and strong basis for combating organized retail crime gangs, and I look forward to increasing these results. I am very pleased that the government can also see the value with an additional 5 million pounds that are equipped with the capacity of opal.

Police Minister lady Diana Johnson said:

“We can defend ourselves against the currently unacceptable levels of shoplifting that determine our communities through concerted police, retail and government measures.

“For this reason, we offer £ 5 million in the next three years to continue to support this work, to significantly increase the financing and to make the government the greatest financial support of this initiative.

“But we can and must go on, which is why I will discuss with the police and retailers in our upcoming Retail Crime Forum, what we can do more in order to tackle this topic as a whole, and not only organized crime gangs and productive offenders, but all perpetrators of the shop theft, which Elen bring to our main roads.

“And that is why our plan for changes will set up 13,000 neighborhood officials and PCSOs in every corner of the country – soon equipped with new powers to tackle attacks on shop workers and thefts under 200 GBP.”

Kari Rodgers is a British retail director at Primark. She said:

“Pegasus was a significant step forward in promoting change and improving security on our main roads.

Ben McDonald is Senior Corporate Protection Manager at Morrens. He said:

“We are very pleased to work together in cooperation with Pegasus to protect our communities. The partnership offers Morrison the opportunity to work closely with the police to prioritize organized retail offices and to put them in court.

The organized retail crime crime team within OPAL takes on recommendations from individual dealers of all sizes, regardless of whether they are part of the Pegasus partnership or not, and will work in different ways to develop intelligence. This can be as easy as a perpetrator, linked criminals and/or vehicles by the national database of the police. They examine patterns of criminal offenses and MOS that are repeated and work with single dealers to exchange information about productive offenders. The team will then support the local police forces through an investigation, share secret services, but also work with the Crown trap service and additional agencies as required.

The results of the OPAL organized retail teams have been included since May 1, 2024:

• 153 transfers that affect retail companies, a third of which came from supermarkets.
• 313 perpetrators identified
• Perpetrators who were identified for the loss of 8 million GBP for retailers
• 105 vehicles identified
• 37 operations (criminal investigations) adopted
• 1,407 positive results
• 33 sentences distributed
• Total care sentences for all criminals of over 39 years
• 128 Upskilling meetings carried out with retailers and retail organizations

Notes for editors:

APCC Katy Bourne is available for an interview. Please send an e -mail to media@apccs.police.uk with all offers.