When asked about the recent shoplifting crackdown, the first thing Kelowna RCMP Cpl. Mike Gauthier did is credit the people who spend every day looking out for shoplifters.
"The front-line workers in this different project are the LPOs, the loss prevention officers," said Gauthier.
Loss prevention officers are employed by the stores.
"We work closely alongside them," he said.
The decision to launch the latest "Operation Barcode" was made after retailers expressed their concern to the RCMP about the amount of ongoing shoplifting.
"They reached out and expressed their concerns," said Gauthier.
In the six-day crackdown, it was the LPOs who would spot the criminal activity.
"Whether that be on foot, or on CCTV cameras," Gauthier explained, "when they observed the theft, they let us know and we're essentially on standby waiting outside for the suspect."
The project netted 47 arrests.
He said there are some cases where thieves work in groups, but most were working solo.
"A lot of them are known to us," said Gauthier. "A lot of them are repeat offenders and that's what we're trying to target are those that are really not getting the picture."
One of the suspects arrested was armed with a replica handgun that was seized during the operation.
Operation Bar Code started in Vancouver to support the people employed by stores to minimize this kind of theft.
"The idea was to mitigate the amount of violence and assaults on the LPOs."
Gauthier explained that the job of the LPO is to stop people or theft, invite them back into the store, and give them the paperwork and recover the items, but it doesn't always go smoothly.
"There have been many cases where there is an act of violence as a result of that," he said.
"So this project was designed to have us be there and ready to assist, and try to prevent these acts of violence from happening."
Gauthier said the effort doesn't stop here.
"It will continue," he said.
"We want to be present in the community and with our partners, the LPOs, it goes a long way."
While most of the people arrested in the crackdown were given a court date and released, some had outstanding warrants and remain locked up.
If you get value from KelownaNow and believe local independent media is important to our community we ask that you please consider subscribing to our daily newsletter.
