WOULD-BE thieves are being warned by Tavistock shopkeepers they are likely to be caught by a new network, writes Guy Boswell.

A Whatsapp group now links most businesses in the town centre in a bid to combat shoplifting and the passing of fake notes.

Although thieving is uncommon in the town, there have been a few instances recently and traders are keen to nip it in the bud. Several shops have been hit by at least one multi-offender who has been identified and caught on security camera in one shop. One trend seems to be for women older than pension age shoplifting.

Shop staff who see anyone stealing or using fake bank notes immediately report it to police and on the Whatsapp group alerting members, so they are extra vigilant in case the thief is seen operating on their premises. Traders have consulted with police on the best way to make the most of the Whatsapp.

The idea is to stop the criminality spreading and acting as a deterrent in the quickest way possible, even before the police can act, said Fergus Biram, Roots and Vines delicatessen manager.

“Stealing is the most common crime followed by trying to use fake notes. So, if we catch someone in the act in our shop, for instance, the idea is that we post all the details on our Whatsapp group, including a photo if we can. All the staff in all the shops can then be extra vigilant for that person. If they spot the perpetrator then we’ve agreed we should be as obvious as possible in watching that person.

“We want the thief to be fully aware they’ve been spotted and stop them thinking they can get away with it. This is a good way of stopping from offending again on other premises.We want it known that this network exists and for word to spread that Tavistock is not an easy target for retail crime. Ideally we want the scheme to act as anti-theft deterrent, so if thieves are thinking of coming to Tavistock, they’ll realise they’re are highly like to be caught — that’s the message.”

Fergus said ideally, the gtown would benefit from a central CCTV network, but understood the high costs involved in setting it up and managing the footage. He said shoplifting was more common close to Christmas and when people felt poorer.

During this year the owner of his shop was threatened by a thief with a syringe who escaped with bottles of gin, while in the same spree in Tavistock, an optician and a building supplies hardware shop was also targeted and hundreds of pounds of items stolen in total. The Whatsapp group is a closed one, which enables photos of suspects to be shared among a limnited number of traders who understand the rules of evidence and the dangers of identifying people publicly who have not been charged or convicted.

Paul Edmonds, who owns Inside Out on West Street, said: “I fully support the Whatsapp group which Fergus started and now covers most shops. We have had a couple of instances recently of theft and I have CCTV inside which does help with gathering evidence and acts as a deterrent. Anything that adds to this by alerting other traders to an offender operating is welcome.”