Latest news with #KingdomSecurity
Daily Mail
18-07-2025
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE The scourge of supermarket pranksters: Security guards report huge rise in teenage tearaways harassing staff and shoppers for clicks
Shop security guards have complained of a 'massive' rise in antisocial behaviour by teenage tearaways harassing staff and customers for social media views. Supermarkets have started turning off their WiFi to stop mobs gathering at in-store cafes to use the Internet while passing time filming themselves 'trying to get a rise' out of employees. They also face the scourge of influencers carrying out 'pranks' with the aim of going viral on TikTok, as well as other platforms such as YouTube and Instagram. Videos show attention-seekers taking items from shoppers' baskets, telling off customers while posing as staff and pretending to shoplift. Others are seen startling a lone woman by moaning in her ear, releasing insects, and shoving soiled clothes in a man's face. It comes at a time the retail sector is already having to deal with a steep rise in theft, abuse, and assaults. Kevin Burton, retail account director at Kingdom Security, says his colleagues are fed up of being targeted by thugs looking 'for kicks and social media attention'. He described wannabee influencers stealing milk to pour over themselves, locking themselves in toilets so they could sneak out at night and even riding bikes through the aisles - knocking over an elderly woman in the process. One particularly disturbing video shows a young man creeping up behind a woman browsing at a homeware store in London and moaning in her ear 'Recently we've had one guy who goes around with a speaker, grabs a couple of milk bottles and throws the milk over himself before rolling around on the floor,' Mr Burton told MailOnline. 'In one incident in West Yorkshire kids were riding bicycles up and down the aisles and an old woman was knocked over. It was all being filmed on social media. 'We've also had an incident of a guy who locks himself in toilets before walking around the shop at night.' While Mr Burton links some of these incidents as involving 'TikTokers and vloggers' he believes a far bigger problem are large groups of children hanging around in shops and harassing staff for entertainment. 'Youths are gathering in customer cafes and using the free WiFi so sometimes we turn it off to deter them,' he said. 'They see a store as somewhere they can just go in and cause havoc and then get a rise from being removed from security, which can lead to assaults when the kids fight back. 'Local councils don't have a lot of money to spend on youth clubs so they don't have anywhere to go for activities and the police are stretched. 'It's a massive problem when it comes to retail sites. Over the last six to 12 months there's been a massive rise.' A YouTuber posing as a Sainsbury's employee telling a customer he had to leave because he has 'bad breath' In one video filmed in a Primark, a TikToker takes a set of boxers from a shelf and adds in a pair that has been stained to appear soiled before shoving it in a shop worker's face The security firm boss described how some teenagers cause a scene as a deliberate distraction tactic. 'In Scotland, the kids are committing antisocial behaviour as a distraction so their friends can steal. 'We're trying to deter criminals who are taking thousands from the shelves and then we've having to deal with these kids at the same time.' Research by MailOnline suggests clips of influencers going into shops to harass workers and members of the public appear to be most widespread on TikTok - although they are present on other platforms too. One particularly disturbing video shows a young man creeping up behind a woman browsing at a homeware store in London and moaning in her ear. After she moves away, the TikToker moves even closer to her and makes another suggestive moan, prompting her to turn around and scream in horror. He then feigns disbelief after a member of staff and several shoppers come to see what is happening. The 'prankster' continues approaching the woman - who goes to sit down and puts her head in her hands. In one video filmed in a Primark, a TikToker takes a set of boxers from a shelf and adds in a pair that has been stained to appear soiled. He then walks over to a shop assistant and shoves the pack under his face, prompting him to push it away and say, 'Please don't put that in my face.' As the shop worker backs away, the bully keeps pushing the underwear towards him as another shopper offers to call security. One TikToker regularly goes up to members of the public in supermarkets before taking items out of their baskets. But when he carried out this stunt in an Asda in Wales it caused a physical confrontation after a man grabbed his shopping back before calling him a 'c***'. A video on Instagram shows a man releasing wild insects into a branch of Halfords, while a YouTuber filmed himself posing as a Sainsbury's worker and telling a customer he had to leave because of his 'bad breath'. Another tiresome prank involved teenagers pretending to be staff at a McDonald's drive-thru before telling security 'you can't touch us' as they try to remove them. In a bid to combat the crime crippling the retail sector, the Government is planning to invest £200million into neighbourhood policing and has vowed to make assaulting a shop worker a standalone offence. Ministers have also axed previous legislation that made stealing goods worth less than £200 a 'summary-only' offence - meaning one that is considered less serious and generally tried in a magistrates' court. Incidents of retail crime hit their highest level on record in the year leading up to August 2024, growing by more than 50 per cent to more than 2,000 incidents a day, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC). In March, the BRC said the cost of retail crime has soared to a staggering £4.2billion last year - including £2.2billion from shoplifting and another £1.8billion spent on crime prevention measures such as CCTV, anti-theft devices and body worn cameras. Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the BRC, said: 'Seeing incidents of theft or abuse has become an all-too-common part of the shopping experience for many people. 'While an incident can be over in a matter of seconds, it can have life-long consequences on those who experience it, making them think twice about visiting their local high streets. 'Criminals are becoming bolder and more aggressive, and decisive action is needed to put an end to it.' TikTok's community guidelines state that it does not allow harassing, degrading, or bullying behaviour on its platform. Some of the videos flagged by MailOnline have now been removed. It claims that from January to March 2025, of the videos removed for violating our policies on harassment and bullying, 91.2% were removed before they were reported to moderators. MailOnline has contacted YouTube and Instagram for comment.
Daily Record
20-05-2025
- Daily Record
Shoppers urged to 'tell on' self-checkout thefts as survey reveals 37% admit to shoplifting
Security gurus are encouraging shoppers to alert shop staff if they witness someone failing to scan an item at self-checkouts, a trend that is bleeding the industry of more than £4billion a year. Surveys indicate nearly two in five shoppers deliberately swipe goods without scanning them at self-service checkouts, slashing retailers' revenues by over four percent of their total sales. Kingdom Security, allied with a host of leading retailers and supermarkets throughout the nation, notes the 'scan and swipe' trend swamping shops has become commonplace for many since the Covid pandemic began. New data from The Grocer show that 37 percent of supermarket customers intentionally neglect to scan one or more items at self-service stations. A nationwide survey querying 1,000 UK residents revealed that 32.5 percent confess to cheating the system by weighing loose commodities inaccurately to shave off their shopping costs. John Nussbaum, Director of Service at Kingdom Security's Retail Division, said: "It's alarming to see this rise over the past years and our officers are only seeing more and more theft in supermarkets and shopping centres across the country. "While some might think this is somehow a lesser offence than outright stealing without paying for a thing, stealing from a machine is still stealing from the store, and ultimately stealing from fellow customers through increased costs. "The reduction of face-to-face contact at checkouts has made some feel emboldened to shoplift in this way. We're urging vigilance to all supermarket shoppers. "If you see shoplifting at a self-service checkout, immediately report it to instore security or staff. If you are tempted to steal at self-checkouts, remember this is a serious offence that isn't worth doing to save a few pounds." Shoplifting adds over £137 to the average UK household's annual food bill, with inflation adjustments taken into account, according to the Police Foundation's predictions. A significant portion of this expense stems from the measures that retailers take to ensure protection against theft and security investments aimed at curbing the annual loss of £4 billion in potential revenue, reports Bristol Live. John further stressed the importance of not taking direct action when it comes to apprehending shoplifters, highlighting the necessity for public safety. John continued: "I'm advising caution to those considering confronting shoplifters, ensuring your personal safety isn't risk is of the utmost concern. "If you see shoplifting in store, immediately alert shop security or call the authorities to intervene, as they are specifically trained to deal with these situations."
Times
12-05-2025
- Business
- Times
Pensioners are shoplifting ‘because they can't afford to eat'
Food retailers have seen a 'massive' increase in pensioner shoplifters over the last year, a security firm has said. John Nussbaum, a director at Kingdom Security, said his staff were seeing a 'different sort of shoplifter now' as the cost of living pushes people to do 'something they've never done before'. Kingdom Security, which provides services for hundreds of shops across Britain, was receiving 20 to 30 reports of shoplifting a week involving 'people who just can't afford to buy food', Nussbaum said. He explained: 'We've seen a massive increase in pensioners shoplifting, putting a jar of coffee in their bag and one in the trolley, that sort of thing,' John Nussbaum said. 'For us over the last 12 months, we've got this different level
The Independent
12-05-2025
- The Independent
‘Massive' increase in pensioner shoplifters across UK
Shoplifting incidents involving pensioners are increasing significantly in the UK, likely due to rising living costs. Retail security firm Kingdom Security reports a weekly surge of 20-30 shoplifting cases nationally, often involving individuals struggling to afford food. An estimated 5 per cent of those caught shoplifting by Kingdom Security staff are over 50, a demographic not typically associated with such crimes. Retailers are often reluctant to involve police when pensioners are caught shoplifting, opting to handle matters internally. This trend coincides with a record high of more than half a million shoplifting offenses recorded by police in England and Wales in 2024.
Epoch Times
12-05-2025
- Epoch Times
‘Massive' Increase in Pensioner Shoplifters in Past Year, Security Firm Reports
Food retailers have seen a 'massive' increase in pensioner shoplifters over the last year, thought to be down to cost-of-living pressures, a security firm has said. John Nussbaum, director of service for retail at Kingdom Security, said his staff were seeing a 'different sort of shoplifter now' as the cost of living 'pushes people to something they've never done before.' Kingdom Security, which provides security services for hundreds of stores across the country, including supermarkets, convenience stores, and shopping malls, was receiving 20 to 30 reports of shoplifting a week from across the UK involving 'people who just can't afford to buy food,' Nussbaum said. He said: 'We've seen a massive increase in pensioners shoplifting, putting a jar of coffee in their bag and one in the trolley, that sort of thing. 'For us over the last 12 months, we've got this different level of crime now. We're now experiencing something different—pensioners, people who don't normally shoplift. 'We've had instances of mothers caught shoplifting when they're with their kids. Related Stories 3/13/2025 12/23/2024 'We're used to seeing the organised gangs, that's the norm, but the types of people being caught now has changed.' He estimated that 5 percent of all those caught shoplifting by Kingdom staff on a weekly basis were aged over 50. 'We've not seen this before, and I've been in security for 30 years. Ten years ago, five years ago, you wouldn't have seen this kind of theft. We put it down to the cost of living. People can't afford to spend £10, £20 on food. It's desperation.' He added: 'Retailers don't tend to involve the police when they're dealing with pensioners. Stores tend to want to handle it on their own. 'It's not good publicity for a supermarket if it got out that a pensioner had been handed over to the police for shoplifting.' Nussbaum's comments follow figures showing that the number of shoplifting offences recorded by police in England and Wales in a year has passed half a million for the first time. A total of 516,971 offences were logged by forces in 2024, up 20 percent from 429,873 in 2023. The figure is the highest since current police recording practices began in the year to March 2003, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Shoplifting offences have been running at record levels for the past two years and have seen a 'sharp rise' since the COVID-19 pandemic, the ONS said. Additionally, Nussbaum said, staff were seeing 'terrible violence now, every day' from organised gangs, with one employee punched in the face just this week and those working at a shopping centre north of London wearing stabproof vests. He said: 'It's not unusual to come across guns on site. 'We carried out a big operation with police to clean up the city centre, which included the shopping centre. We found knives, drugs—there's a lot of drug-dealing going on. 'We have a quick response unit for one of our bigger retailers which can get to places very quickly and is highly trained for a variety of incidents and safeguarding. 'But you have to remember that retail staff also have to deal with this every day.' He said: 'There's no fear any more. 'If someone gets arrested they might get a fine or spend a night in jail. There's no deterrent any more. There's nothing to stop these people. 'We've had prolific shoplifters who get arrested and they're back two days later. We have this quite a lot.' Nussbaum said he supported facial recognition technology being trialled by Asda at five of its Greater Manchester stores, involving customers' faces, picked up on CCTV, being scanned and compared against individuals on an internal watchlist. The watchlist, compiled by Asda, is made up of individuals staff suspect have been involved in 'theft, violence and/or fraud in Asda stores,' although they may not be convicted of any crime. Home Bargains, Southern Co-op, Budgens, Costcutter, and several independent convenience stores use similar technology.
