Police Service of Northern Ireland Chief Superintendent Darrin Jones, has welcomed the news that Northern Ireland’s Retail Crimewatch Scheme has been shortlisted for a National Fraud award. This crime prevention initiative is a partnership between police, Belfast City Centre Management and hundreds of retailers across Northern Ireland. It has been nominated in the “Best Retailer and Policing Collaboration” category.
Chief Superintendent Jones, who is the Police Service of Northern Ireland’s Business Crime lead said “This is a fantastic achievement by our officers and partners in the business sector. This is a nationally recognised award and this initiative really is a UK-leading example of best practice between the police and business. Crime prevention initiatives and partnership work such as Retail Crimewatch are more important than ever given the current financial pressures on the business community.”
The news of the scheme’s nomination was also welcomed by Belfast City Centre Manager, Geraldine Duggan. She said “We are delighted the scheme has been shortlisted. Retail Crimewatch is the only business crime partnership in the UK successfully pursuing burglary convictions for prolific offenders. It also takes a very practical approach to dealing with shoplifting by sharing police images of prolific offenders with retailers, empowering them to identify, challenge and ultimately exclude prolific offenders from their stores”.