'I'm a shop owner losing £1,500 a month to the epidemic of shoplifting'
A shop owner said his business is losing around £1,500 a month to the epidemic of shoplifting - which has exasperated since the pandemic and a law change.
Saba Mahesh, 50, has released CCTV of youths brazenly stealing vapes and sweets to highlight the scourge sweeping the nation. Small businesses have been particularly suffering since the government's move to effectively decriminalise the theft of goods worth less than £200.
And in Saba's opinion and experience, children recognise there is little authorities can do to tackle the behaviour. It echoes problems small business owners in Bolton, Greater Manchester, have faced recently.
Saba Mahesh has shared CCTV of youths brazenly stealing from his newsagents (SWNS)In one clip Saba has shared, a youth even crawls into the shop in Sheerness, Kent, on his hands and knees so whoever is behind the counter doesn't spot him. "I have been reporting the children who come into my stores and steal things since 2021. It always seems to be teenagers between 15 and 18 years old who cause issues," Mr Mahesh said.
"Since the Covid pandemic things have gotten really bad. These kids are stealing sweets, toys and even forcefully taking boxes of disposable vapes from behind the counters."
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Saba says his four stores are targeted daily by youths, whose anti-social and criminal behaviour has worsened since the coronavirus pandemic. Things have become so bleak for the entrepreneur, from Surrey, that he is forced to put prices up to make up for his financial losses.
The footage shows children shamelessly take items and walk straight out of the shop (SWNS)He estimates that young people make away with as much as £50-worth of goods in a single day, and shared CCTV footage from his stores of yobs nonchalantly plucking sweets and boxes of disposable vapes from shelves. The entrepreneur runs four newsagents in Sheerness.
"What can you do? The kids keep coming back because they’re getting away with it. If myself and my staff are busy serving other customers they sneak in and steal without us realising," Saba continued.
"I can’t invest in security guards either as it will be a waste of money that’ll further eat into my profits... We’re really struggling, it’s a tough situation to be in. Because we’re losing money have no other option but to stop special offers on some products and raise the prices on others. I have to find a way to cut our losses that’s why milk has risen from £1.70 to £1.90. My hands are tied."
Saba estimates his business is losing around £1,500 a month to the shoplifting epidemic (SWNS)The store owner added that shoplifting tends to increase during the school summer holidays, and he even sees children from other areas targeting his businesses.
A rise in recent vandalism and youth crime in Sheerness - the second largest town on the Isle of Sheppey - has been blamed on Government cuts, a failing education system and poor parenting, with some locals going as far as to label teens as "feral".
Over the past six months, vandals burned down a play castle in a children's sandpit play area, damaged parked cars owned by staff at a nearby playgroup and even scattered broken glass in an outside paddling pool.
Elsewhere on the island, war memorial statues in Minster-On-Sea were damaged earlier this year and seaside toilets were set ablaze. Sheerness County Youth Centre boss Ray Featherstone, who’s been in place since 1961, has previously said children of the area are acting up due to a lack of things for them to do.
The 79-year-old man said: "Youth work is reducing and that’s because the volunteering sector is very poor at the moment. There isn’t anything for young people to do and because of that teenagers trying to have some fun suddenly start doing something illegal instead."
The Mirror contacted Kent Police for a statement.
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