Plain clothes police target festive shoplifters

A police force has assembled a specialist team to tackle shoplifting and anti-social behaviour during the festive period.

Northumbria Police officers in plain clothes will be deployed daily in Gateshead's town centre over the next 11 weeks.

The force said it had already carried out 23 stop and searches, sent one prolific offender back to prison, and returned a number of high-value goods to shops.

Supt Stuart Liddell said: "Retailers are already under a lot of pressure due to increased demand and, sadly, there are some individuals that take advantage of this."

Retailers have complained shoplifting is a huge problem in the run-up to Christmas with thieves using online marketplaces to sell what they have stolen.

Supt Liddell said the force was already seeing the benefits of having additional resources in the town centre.

"The response from the community has been extremely positive," he said.

Work was also being carried out with shops to gather evidence using high-quality CCTV systems at Trinity Square and Team Valley, the force said.

Trinity Square manager Lynn Stainsby described it as a "great initiative" .

"We look forward to working together with the team to make the town centre a safer place to live and visit," she said.

Follow BBC North East on X, external, Facebook, external, Nextdoor and Instagram, external. Send your story ideas to [email protected].