"Traumatized": Violent shoplifting has tripled in Vancouver since 2007

@DeputyChow/Twitter

Smash and grabs at Vancouver businesses have become quite frequent in recent years, and Vancouver police told Daily Hive that violent shoplifting has actually tripled since 2007.

On Valentine’s Day, Vancouver Police’s Deputy Chief Howard Chow tweeted that another “violent shoplifter” was arrested in downtown Vancouver after pulling a knife on staff when confronted.

Another violent shoplifter arrested downtown yesterday after he pulled a knife on staff when challenged. Incidents like this take place daily, and that’s why we’re partnering with businesses, LPOs, & launching a citywide project. Stay tuned. #enuff pic.twitter.com/YkdfBhlG7a

— Howard Chow (@DeputyChow) February 15, 2023

At the end of his tweet, Chow suggested that the Vancouver Police Department would partner with businesses to combat the rise of violent shoplifting, ending the tweet by saying, “stay tuned.”

We put this to the VPD, and while the force couldn’t share specific details about what this partnership with businesses might entail, it did share that it was a growing concern.

Aside from sharing that violent shoplifting cases have tripled since 2007, the VPD also shared that cases rose 20% last year compared to 2021.

“We see a lot of workers being injured and traumatized when thieves use weapons like bear spray, knives, needles and physical force,” said VPD Constable Tania Visintin.

“We’ll be working with retailers in all neighbourhoods of the city to identity, target, and arrest shoplifters,” she added.

Visintin said that more information would be available in the coming weeks.

Over the last two years, Daily Hive has reported on several stories and spoken to businesses related to vandalism and theft across the city.

We recently spoke to the owner of DownLow Chicken, who was dealing with a smashed window. A few weeks ago, we also talked to Vancouver police about increased crime in the Granville Entertainment District related to violence and theft, calling it a challenging area to police.

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