Rise of the 'well-off middle-aged female' shoplifters: Stores in upmarket Surrey towns blame surge in thefts on affluent criminals - as shops say 'lack of police presence' has left them at mercy of thieves
Shopkeepers in the genteel market towns of Surrey have accused police of sitting on their hands as they fall victim to a new breed of shoplifters – 'well-off middle-aged women'.
Lindsey Kleinlercher, who operates 18 gift shops across the south of England, is among those who have seen 'blatant' thefts by the outwardly respectable from her stores in the county.
Some are thought to be stealing items to resell online, while others are simply taking advantage of a lack of police presence.
'It's blatant and brazen and it's not the people you'd automatically suspect any more,' she told MailOnline.
'There are the obvious ones with big bags and little kids who take Jellycats but there are also very normal well-to-do people coming in and stealing things, they don't look like your normal thief.
'It's everywhere, it's literally in every single town. Farnham, in particular, is appalling.'
Inge Dunbar, who owns the Sass and Spirit gift shop in nearby Haslemere, has paid for CCTV and extra staff in a bid to disrupt the crime wave.
'What we get most often is actually well-off middle-aged women,' she said.
Inge Dunbar, 55, who owns gift shop Sass and Spirit, has had to pay extra money towards CCTV cameras and an additional member of staff
The Surrey town of Haslemere, where business owners have reported a rise in shoplifting in recent months
'That's the thing. If someone's stealing bread, of course you feel sympathy because they're struggling.
'But when they're stealing in a shop like this? That's not to do with the cost of living crisis.'
Ms Dunbar said the most popular items among shoplifters are clothes, jewellery and Jellycats - a popular soft toy brand.
'Because of the layout of my shop, I can't see what's going on everywhere,' she added.
'When it started happening, I knew I had to get CCTV and hire another staff member so there are two of us covering the shop.'
The problem has become so bad in recent months that messages are sent in crime-busting WhatsApp groups 'every single day'.
Shop owners inform one another if they have been stolen from and share CCTV footage of criminals to look out for.
In Farnham's WhatsApp chat, even police and staff from chain stores like Waitrose are members.
Owner of MB Cyclery Ben Marks, 37, (left) and Tom Gunner, 23, (right). The cycle shop had all of its windows smashed in during a break-in over the summer
Jellycat soft toys (pictured) are among the most commonly stolen items, alongside clothes and jewellery
And all business owners in Haslemere are aware of 'particular' shoplifters who frequent the town centre, but police action is still insufficient, according to Ms Dunbar.
'You can tell immediately when some of them walk in because they're holding big, empty bags,' she said.
'There are also particular people who we know to be repeat offenders.'
But Ms Dunbar said even a gentle police presence could alleviate pressure on business owners.
'I know they're overstretched. I know there are issues. But all it takes is a bit of a presence and that could deter people.'
Pat Smith, 70, who is a manager at Scope, said lots of people steal clothing to resell on online marketplaces such as Vinted.
'We had this one beautiful hat on display in the window and it was taken in less than half an hour,' she added.
'People take things to resell them. They're turning stealing into a business.'
The owner of MB Cyclery, Ben Marks, 37, had all of his shop windows smashed during a break-in last summer.
He said: 'They broke all the windows overnight and nicked six bikes,' he recalled.
'We have an alarm that calls the police but these criminals know there are never any officers in the area, so they have some time before anyone shows up.
'My partner and I managed to get here before the police did that night.'
Mr Marks is also a member of the WhatsApp chat dedicated to spotting shoplifters.
'There's a message on there every single day, I'd say. It was especially bad in the run up to Christmas.'
Haslemere's reputation as a 'quiet and safe area' can actually work against shop owners because 'thieves know that too', Mr Marks said.
Stuart Warren, 59, owns antique shop The Ark Stores and suffered three break-ins in two weeks
Imogen Cox, 39, who works at Scope Haslemere, has said she is surprised by the rate of shoplifting from the charity shop
Tom Gunner, who also works in the cycle shop, said the team have become very good at identifying potential shoplifters.
The 23-year-old said: 'There are warning signs, like people who come in and avoid eye contact, then you see them looking towards the cameras.'
In some cases, potential thieves come in and ask for the prices of different bikes or request to take them outside for a 'test', Mr Gunner said.
'We ask to see their ID and take some details first and then they promptly leave the shop.'
Ms Kleinlercher said thefts from her stores were 'huge at the moment', and the traditional culprits have not disappeared either.
'In our Haslemere shop, we had someone who walked in, went upstairs and went through everyone's handbags and stole things,' she recalled.
'It's quite aggressive now, too. In our Oxted shop, someone walked out with hundreds of pounds worth of candles.
'Our manager got hold of his backpack as he ran outside and he turned around and hit her across the face.'
Luckily, a shop across the street caught the incident on camera which enabled the case to go to court and the manager to be awarded damages, Ms Kleinlercher said.
Stuart Warren, 59, who owns antique shop The Ark Stores, had three break-ins in a fortnight.
He said: 'Shoplifting has definitely become a big problem in Haslemere.
'Three times in two weeks thieves came along and broke our padlock and stole our stuff. We lost just under £3,000.
'What was interesting, though, was that they didn't take things I'd consider particularly easy to sell.
'It seemed like a bunch of chancers who just grabbed what they could and hoped they could resell.'
Scope Haslemere (pictured) has seen thieves steal clothing to resell on alternative online marketplaces, such as Vinted
Business owners in Haslemere say that a lack of police presence and a tedious crime reporting process have worsened the problem
Mr Warren said he thinks criminals have noticed the area is a 'soft touch' due to lack of police presence.
'When I had those break-ins, the police were helpful but it would be good to have officers actually on the ground.
'I think just having a couple around could be a real deterrent.'
Imogen Cox, who works at Scope Haslemere, says the problem is even happening in charity shops.
The 39-year-old said: 'I started volunteering here a year ago and I'm surprised at how much has been stolen.
'Things get taken every week probably.
'We also see people who come in intending to steal and then bottle it before they leave.
'They walk out and you notice a bag by the door stuffed with a couple of coats.'
Oliver Leach, 43, runs local café Oliver's Coffee and is also the town's mayor. He has confronted shoplifters after recognising them from pictures on the WhatsApp group.
Cafe owner and town Mayor Oliver Leach, 43, once identified a thief from the local WhatsApp group, took their stolen items and returned them to the shop
A Haslemere street. One shop owner noted that since having spoken up about shoplifting in recent days, a stronger police presence has emerged in the town
He said: 'There was an occasion where someone sent their CCTV footage into the WhatsApp group and I looked up and saw the shoplifters at one of our tables.
'I went over, took their bag of items off them and asked them to leave. I then returned the things to the shop.'
Mr Leach agreed that there is not a sufficient police presence in Haslemere and said one of the issues faced by independent business owners the ineffective crime reporting process.
'The chains do get targeted the most here - Waitrose, Boots, Space NK.
'But Haslemere has a lot of independent shops and they fall victim as well.
'The thing is, independent businesses are really struggling at the moment. We're all working really hard.
'Owners simply don't have the time to go through the nightmare reporting process.'
Mr Leach said retrieving CCTV as evidence and navigating the police portal takes 'at least' an hour and a half.
'We can't afford to be doing that.'
The town of Farnham, Surrey, where the local crime-busting WhatsApp group has been joined by local police and staff at chain stores including Waitrose
Farnham, one of the Surrey market towns reporting an increase in shoplifting in recent months due to lack of police presence
A CCTV sign next to a Jellycat soft toy, which business owner Ms Dunbar said was among the most stolen items from her shop
He added that since reports of the shoplifting increase have emerged, he has noticed more police officers.
'In the last few days, since we've been speaking about it, we have seen a couple police patrols, we have seen more of a presence.'
Brewers, a painting and decorating chain, has a shop on Haslemere High Street.
Staff member Malcolm Stuart said: 'We were hit twice last year, we haven't been this year but we're one month in.'
Surrey Police responded by saying targeting shoplifting is a 'priority' for the force.
Chief Inspector Andy Hill said: 'We would encourage any businesses to report because it helps us to build an information and intelligence picture.
'When something is reported to us, we follow all those reasonable lines of enquiry, including circulating CCTV images with success to identify offenders.
'We also work closely with neighbouring forces to catch those who carry out offences across borders to try and avoid detection.'
