FOI 475-2024 / Apr 2024 / Shoplifting
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST REFERENCE NO: 475-2024
I write in connection with your request for information which was received on 1st May 2024 as follows:
Please can you provide the following information from 01/05/2019 to 01/05/2024
- The total number of shoplifting offences logged by the force
- Of those, the number of shoplifting offences that were listed as occurring at a supermarket, or mentioned Tesco, ASDA, Sainsbury’s, Aldi, Lidl, Morrison’s, Iceland, Waitrose or Marks and Spencer.
- The number of shoplifting offences that led to an arrest.
- The number of shoplifting offences that led to a charge or summons.
- The number of shoplifting offences that led to no further action being taken
Please can I have the information broken down by year.
Please find the Warwickshire Police response set out below.
Response: Please be advised that due to the nature of our recording systems, the information requested in relation to shoplifting offences which led to arrest is not available in a readily retrievable format. The Crime Recording System and Custody System are separate and it would therefore be necessary to cross reference each and every shoplifting investigation, recorded during the stated five year period, with the Custody System in order to determine those which led to arrest. This would involve thousands of offences which would take an inordinate amount of time and would be above the amount to which we are legally required to respond i.e. the cost of locating and retrieving the information exceeds the ‘appropriate level’ as stated in the Freedom of Information (Fees and Appropriate Limit) Regulations 2004.
In accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000, this letter acts as a Refusal Notice for this part of the request and if one part of a request exceeds the fees limit then S12 of the Act applies to the whole request.
In accordance with Section 16 of the Act I have a duty to provide advice and assistance in relation to your request; however, due to the volume of records involved I am unable to suggest a way to revise this element of your request into one that could be answered within the fees limit.
I can advise that, were you to ask for the number of arrests for shoplifting as a standalone set of information, and not directly associated with the offence investigations, then it may be possible to conduct searches within the fees limit. Further, for Q4 and Q5 it may be possible to provide the outcomes of the investigations for the response to Q1 which will include whether this led to a charge or any other outcome, from which you will be able to determine which led to ‘no further action’. Therefore, the information we may be able to provide within the fees limit would be:
- The total number of shoplifting offences logged by the force.
- Of those, the number of shoplifting offences that were listed as occurring at a supermarket, or mentioned Tesco, ASDA, Sainsbury’s, Aldi, Lidl, Morrison’s, Iceland, Waitrose or Marks and Spencer.
- The number of arrests for shoplifting recorded in the period.
- The number of shoplifting offences logged by the force broken down by outcome.
Every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided is as accurate as possible.
Your attention is drawn to the below which details your right of complaint.
Should you have any further enquiries concerning this matter, please write or email the Freedom of Information Unit quoting the reference number above.
Yours sincerely
Freedom of Information Officer
Freedom of Information Unit
Warwickshire Police
PO Box 4
Leek Wootton
Warwickshire
CV35 7QB