A York trader has spoken of his anger and disappointment after he caught a young thief in the act – only for police to say “let him go”.
Christian Taylor owns Taylor Made Kitchen, the popular food outlet in Shambles Market.
He and two others witnessed a teenage boy take a T-shirt from a rack owned by a stallholder at about 5.45pm on Tuesday night.
The incident was also captured on Christian’s CCTV. It shows two boys cycle into the market. One boy then goes up to the T-shirt rack as the stallholder was packing up for the night, looks around, grabs the shirt and makes off with it.
“Fortunately for us, parts of the market were closed off due to cleaning so he didn’t really have anywhere to go,” Christian told YorkMix.
“We caught up to him. We asked him to stay there whilst we phoned the police.”
Force control told him an officer was around the corner and would be with them as soon as possible.
When no one had appeared after 45 minutes, Christian rang again. “We were informed that the officer had been reassigned to another job that was ‘more pressing’ and that there were no officers available to attend.”
He asked what he should do with the thief. “They said we should let him go.”
Christian said: “It’s really disheartening. I find it quite disgusting. We’d actually call this person red-handed.
“He was a youth. Potentially, this was the first time that he actually committed an offence.
“The whole reason for calling the police wasn’t necessarily to prosecute the individual. It was more to scare him, get him to realise crime doesn’t pay.”
North Yorkshire Police say they take retail crime seriously and are going to follow up on this case. You can read their full response below.
But for Christian, their lack of response “says to people within the market that if crime happens, it might not be good enough for the police to attend.
“Do they care about the Shambles Market traders? Do they care about independent businesses around York?
“After speaking to a few other individuals, it’s led to the idea that police don’t attend crime that’s under the value of £100. What does that say to the criminals?”
It’s not his first disappointment with the police response. A few months ago he was assaulted in Shambles Market.
“I asked a group of teenagers that were drinking to leave. They’ve launched a bottle at my head.
“At the time it did bruise and came out in a lump. Fortunately, during the event, a member of the public was walking through the market and shouted at the group and intervened, but in doing so, ended up in a scrap with the teenagers.
“Whilst all that happened, I was on the phone to the police, and the police said that there’s nobody available right now. And that’s for an assault.”
He says he supports the police, and realises their resources are stretched. “But the fact that the police didn’t attend is upsetting.”
He wants something done about the “prolific shoplifting” in the market during the day, and anti-social behaviour of drinkers who hang around the stalls at night.
Christian has already discussed what happened with the manager of Shambles Market and aims to take it to various retailing bodies in York. He’d also love York’s MPs to get involved.
“We need to do something about what’s potentially stopping these police officers from being able to attend a crime that’s been committed,” he said.
Investigation ongoing
North Yorkshire Police said they are focusing on retail crime and are investigating the theft on Tuesday evening.
A North Yorkshire Police spokesperson told us: “We received a report that a shoplifter was detained at Newgate Market in York.
“An officer was initially assigned to deal with the incident but whilst on route they were diverted to a higher risk incident within the locality. Our officers are deployed based on robust national assessments around threat, risk, and harm.
“Last night’s incident will now be managed by our Initial Enquiry Team who will take lead on the progressing of the investigation, working closely with our York-based retail crime officers to ensure all investigative opportunities are maximised.
“Over the last 18 months, North Yorkshire Police has placed a significant focus on addressing retail crime. This effort has led to notable increases in both the number of reports and arrests.
“The rise in reporting aligns with a national trend, and we expect this upward trajectory to continue as businesses gain greater confidence in reporting these crimes.
“Each command within North Yorkshire Police now has a dedicated retail crime team, resulting in higher arrest rates and a marked improvement in positive outcomes.
“In addition, we have introduced NICE Investigate, a system that allows retailers to upload CCTV footage directly, streamlining evidence collection.
“Looking ahead, we are developing a single online reporting system for retail crime, aiming to simplify the process further and enhance support for businesses.
“This was set out by our Chief Officer Team at a dedicated retail crime conference in York which was attended by various retailers and business leaders last week.”