Police Under Fire as Nearly 300,000 Shoplifting Crimes Go Unsolved

Nearly 290,000 shoplifting incidents went unsolved in England and Wales, with the Metropolitan Police recording the poorest results.

House of Commons library analysis found that in 2024, 76.9% of the 93,705 shoplifting reports made to the Met were closed with no suspect identified, while only 5.9% ended in a charge. On average, 197 offences a day in London were left unresolved.

The British Retail Consortium believes the real scale is far greater, noting that just one in ten thefts is reported to police. Shoplifting is estimated to cost retailers in the capital about £17 million each month.

Across England and Wales, 289,464 cases were shut with no suspect in 2024–25, an increase from 245,337 the previous year. The Liberal Democrats, who commissioned the analysis, calculated that this equates to around 793 unsolved cases daily. The data covered all police forces in England and Wales, excluding Humberside, as well as the British Transport Police.

Official statistics published last month revealed that shoplifting reached a record high in 2024–25, with 530,643 cases logged—a 20% rise from 444,022 in 2023–24, and the highest figure since records began in 2002–03.

Lib Dem MP Joshua Reynolds condemned the figures, saying: “These shameful numbers show that the police are failing to deal with the shoplifting epidemic across the country.”

Earlier this month, Thames Valley Police and Crime Commissioner Matthew Barber suggested shoppers might play a role in tackling theft, saying they could report incidents, film offenders, shout at them, or even physically intervene. He stressed he was not asking the public to replace police efforts.

But Mr Reynolds, who has worked in retail, criticised the idea as “reckless and dangerous”, adding that confronting shoplifters is both frightening and risky.

Retail leaders have repeatedly warned that shop theft is spiralling, and are urging faster results, even as ministers pledge thousands more neighbourhood police officers by next spring.

The Met recently announced nearly 1,400 arrests in a crackdown across London’s 20 worst-affected town centres. Among those detained were serial shoplifter Steven Barrs, who targeted the same Notting Hill Co-op 15 times, and Mark Stavrou, 32, who admitted to 113 thefts and burglaries in a spree against supermarkets in Chingford.

In another incident, masked robbers stormed an O2 store on Tottenham Court Road on July 24, stealing 100 iPhones and Apple Watches worth £100,000. They were intercepted minutes later nearby, with police recovering the stolen devices and seizing a large machete. Three suspects, aged 18, 24, and 25, were arrested on suspicion of aggravated burglary.

A Met Police spokesperson said: “We are prioritising the most prolific shoplifters due to the fear and disruption they cause to retail staff and communities. We know shoplifting drives other crimes and antisocial behaviour. This year, we’ve solved 163% more cases compared with the same period last year, and we continue working closely with retailers to better target offenders.”