WE’VE SEEN AN INCREASE IN THEFTS SINCE POLICE PRESENCE HAS REDUCED, SAYS PHARMACIST
A pharmacist has said they have seen an increase in thefts since the police presence on the streets has been reduced.
Speaking on GB News Sanjeev Panesar said: “We operate a number of pharmacies across Birmingham and first hand, I’ve had to intervene and apprehend some of the perpetrators myself. That has involved sometimes chasing after them, sometimes across a busy road as well so it could be potentially fatal.
“It’s a very worrying situation and more recently, we have seen that increase in petty theft in our pharmacies. It’s a big concern for our teams and our healthcare staff that are here to care for their communities and patients and provide healthcare services, not deal with verbal or physical abuse.
“They can be very brazen about it – just walking in, opening the bags and taking just various items off the shelves, whether that’s medicines or other retail goods.
“And the worrying thing is here we’re not just like any of the retail business. We’ve got medicines, often high risk medicines that we stock and store in our pharmacies. If that gets into the wrong hands, it could potentially be life threatening and fatal for the general public.
“So it’s a really serious issue and a big cause for concern that we have.
“There’s no specific statistics [about links to the drugs trade] but we do hear reports of pharmacies who have got CCTV footage where there’s break ins overnight, potentially, where there are high risk medicines that are being targeted.
“Pharmacies are experiencing maybe more through the retail area and some of the lower grade medicines. But obviously, every medicine carries a risk, and I’m sure there would be a lot of pharmacies who are experiencing more serious crimes and criminal activity taking place as well, especially after hours, overnight as well.
“Going back many years, I think the police presence was very well known in the communities. We had local community offices coming around to all the various shopping parades, popping their heads and giving us local intel and support. We noticed a big difference that crime reduced.
“But since that presence has gone, there’s definitely been an increase. And we’ve noticed, even if we report various crimes, you don’t necessarily hear a response back, especially if it’s what would be classed as petty theft – although, obviously all theft is serious.
“Some of the more serious incidents, if we happen to know the assailant then there’s been successful apprehension of that individual, but a lot of the time you don’t hear back. So it can be, again, equally frustrating. And you think, are you getting anywhere to make a difference here?”
Discussing the shopkeeper who called shoplifters “scumbags”, Panesar said: “I think you’ve got to understand from the shopkeeper’s perspective, the frustration and the anger that’s felt there, especially if you are repeatedly targeted. I think again, from people who are committing these crimes, we don’t know the reasons behind it.
“It doesn’t justify it. And I think that’s really important, that [shoplifting] is not the answer if they’re going through hardship.
“You don’t know if there’s mental health issues at play there so there could be a raft of issues that are causing it and that’s a deeper societal issue that needs to be addressed.
“But you can understand from the shop owner’s perspective, why that frustration is there and why they’ve reacted that way.”
