Plain-clothed police deployed in new shoplifting crackdown

"SHOPLIFTERS are warned the person standing next to you in the aisle could be a plain-clothed officer", said Surrey's Police and Crime Commissioner, Lisa Townsend, as part of a new crackdown on retail crime in Surrey, which aims to "drive down" shoplifting offences.

- By JOSEPH BICKLE [e-mail] @SurreyLive

This follows police estimates that shoplifting charges have increased "fourfold" in the past 12 months across the county.

In response, the force has launched a new crackdown on retail crime, whereby plain-clothed officers will patrol businesses across Guildford and Waverley.

This crackdown is in conjunction with the Commissioner's vow to return to "back-to-basics policing" in her newest Police and Crime Plan, which will work as a blueprint for the priorities of Surrey Police over the next three years.