Shoplifting on the rise www.privateofficer.com

NEWBURYPORT MA. Nov. 7 2007 - Downtown businesses have noticed an increase in shoplifting over the past several weeks. But none of those merchandise thefts was as brazen as the robbery of John Farley's Clothiers yesterday.Police are looking for man who robbed the store's cash register and got into a scuffle with employees as he fled the scene.The man entered the store about 11:30 a.m. and grabbed an unknown amount of money from the cash register, Lt. Richard Siemasko said. Employees trying to stop him got into a fight with him and hit the window over the front door, cracking the glass into a large spiderweb. The man escaped and drove away, Siemasko said.John Farley employees would not comment about the incident. Siemasko said police were working to create a sketch of the robber. While yesterday's cash-register robbery was somewhat unusual, merchandise loss from shoplifting has been a concern downtown for years because the owners of many small stores want to maximize display space, making it difficult for small staffs to monitor shoppers. Because there is little police can do to prevent shoplifting in individual stores, most shopkeepers have taken their own loss-prevention steps.Haley LeBuff, a clerk at Mary Jane, a woman's shoe and clothing store, said she and other employees have noticed more items missing in recent weeks. A Merrimac woman stole nearly $700 worth of items two weeks ago. LeBuff thinks shoplifters are sharing information."Word gets out when there's an easy target," LeBuff said.But Mary Jane is not such an easy target now, LeBuff said. Customers are no longer allowed to keep bags from other stores with them while browsing, there's a limit on the number of items that can be taken into the fitting room, and the layout of the store has been changed so clerks can see everything at any time, LeBuff said.She also thinks the store's nature might deter future thefts. "People feel bad about ripping off a small store," LeBuff said. "It's one thing if it's a mall or a corporate chain, but this is someone's life."But people are still taking pieces of jewelry from Kim Gobbi's Studio Jewelry store. Gobbi said pieces are missing every weekend. "It's definitely on the rise," she said.To combat shoplifters, owners have gone as far as reconfiguring the stores to improve sight lines, taking away from display space to keep an eye on shoppers.
In the past, the Police Department has held classes for store owners on defending against shoplifting, and Siemasko said he wanted to start the classes again. The simplest lesson? Don't try to stop thieves yourself, police said.Two years ago, Lee Yeomans, owner of the now-closed Candle & Mug Shop on State Street, chased down a shoplifter at her store.Yeomans chased the woman to her car, which was full of other items from local stores. She was able to identify the woman's car to police.But while police were grateful, they don't recommend such measures."We don't ever recommend trying to stop them, it's not worth it," Siemasko said. "Are $100 jeans worth your life?"