'Double dipping in loss': Shoplifting on the rise in Waterloo region
Shoplifting appears to be on the rise in Waterloo region, according to Waterloo regional police and staff at a local grocery store, and inflation could be partly to blame.
Staff at the Upper Village Market in Kitchener said by the time they catch shoplifters on their security cameras, it’s often too late.
“What can I do? I try to stop them and it doesn't work out. I run behind him, it doesn't work out,” admitted Rakesh Patel, the store’s director.
Patel said it may have something to do with product prices rising due to inflation, leaving some customers frustrated.
“People don't have that much money in their pocket, especially kids,” Patel said.
In 2022 he lost a few thousand dollars’ worth of merchandise because of shoplifting, and one incident sticks out in his mind.
“Last year we had a bad experience. We sell fireworks here. One kid ran… [with a] $300 box,” Patel said. “So that kind of stuff I'm seeing for the first time in seven years.”
The security cameras at Upper Village Market. (CTV News/Spencer Turcotte)
Waterloo regional police provided CTV News with data from the last few years. The data shows shoplifting cases have climbed every year since 2020. In 2020 there were 2,177 cases of shoplifting thefts under $5,000. In 2021, cases went up by just over a hundred. In 2022 the number of cases jumped by more than a thousand compared to the year before.
Patel said the numbers reported to police in Waterloo region may be even higher because he said it is not always worth the hassle of reporting minor thefts.
He admits he doesn’t call the cops and admitted the same goes for trying to get the money back through insurance.
“The problem is when you call insurance companies they say 'oh you put [in] a claim, we'll increase your premium by 20 per cent,'” Patel said. “So it’s a double dipping in loss.”
So while the price for just about everything has gone up – it’s clear some aren’t paying at all. Which means retailers are the ones on the hook.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'I just can't believe that it took so long': Body found in wreckage 3 months after deadly fire
A man accused of arson in a January Old Strathcona apartment fire is expected to be charged with manslaughter after a body was discovered in the burned building late last month.
No proof man lied to brother about number of kittens born in litter, B.C. tribunal rules
A man was denied a $5,000 payout from his brother after a B.C. tribunal dismissed his claim disputing how many kittens were born in a litter.
Quebec police hand out hundreds of tickets to Hells Angels and other bikers before 'first run' meeting
Quebec provincial police handed out hundreds of fines to Hells Angels members and other supporting motorcycle clubs who met for their 'first run' in a small town near Sherbrooke, Que.
Explosion at train station leads to discovery of stolen car on Montreal's South Shore: police
Police are investigating after a BMW exploded in the St-Lambert Exo train station parking lot on Montreal's South Shore.
A Chinese driver is praised for helping reduce casualties in a highway collapse that killed 48
A Chinese truck driver was praised in local media Saturday for parking his vehicle across a highway and preventing more cars from tumbling down a slope after a section of the road in the country's mountainous south collapsed and killed at least 48 people.
Snakes almost on a plane: U.S. TSA discovers a bag with small snakes in passenger's pants
According to an X post by the Transportation Security Administration, officers at the Miami International Airport found the small bag of snakes hidden in a passenger's trousers on April 26 at a checkpoint.
Russia puts Ukrainian President Zelenskyy on its wanted list
Russia has put Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on its wanted list, Russian state media reported Saturday, citing the interior ministry’s database.
A candidate for Germany's key party was beaten up while campaigning for European elections
A candidate for Chancellor Olaf Scholz's center-left party in next month's election for the European Parliament was beaten up and seriously injured while campaigning in an eastern city, the party said Saturday.
Grandparents killed in wrong-way crash on Hwy. 401 identified
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.