A suspected burglar is to be taken to court by a private “police force” for the first time in Britain amid concerns that officers are still failing to investigate “low level” crimes.
The private security company – which provides retailers with staff to stop and apprehend shoplifters – is mounting the first private prosecution against an alleged burglar who avoided prosecution.
Two detectives from the company identified the alleged suspect from CCTV footage after he mounted an overnight raid on an M&S store, stealing £500 of sirloin and T-bone steak and 20 bottles of prosecco.
They claimed they tracked him down, arrested him and recorded a confession with their body-worn video cameras.
The company TM Eye, founded by a former Scotland Yard detective chief inspector, is now preparing to prosecute the man over five burglaries.
The firm has its own legal department which has already successfully prosecuted 280 shoplifters.
Even though it is a private case, the firm’s team of lawyers will be treated the same as any state prosecutor. If convicted the defendant faces a maximum jail sentence of 14 years.
David McKelvey, the founder of TM Eye, said: “The lesson is that every burglary deserves an investigation because there is always an opportunity to solve the case if you take the time to do the basics.”
Police pledge
Commercial premises as well as outbuildings, garages and sheds are excluded from a police pledge made in June that officers will visit the scene of every burglary.
However, ministers have told the police they must investigate any crime where there is a reasonable line of inquiry.
An investigation by the Telegraph this summer found police failed to solve a single burglary in neighbourhoods across nearly half of England and Wales in the past three years. National charging rates for burglary have fallen from one in 14 (6.7 per cent) in 2016 to fewer than one in 25 (3.9 per cent) in 2022.
TM Eye started by specialising in investigating and prosecuting counterfeit and fake goods rackets. Over five years it says it has brought more than 500 successful prosecutions by working with police forces internationally, the FBI and the Federal Drugs Administration.
My Local Bobby
It launched My Local Bobby two years ago to provide residents, firms and shops with neighbourhood policing to combat thefts, criminal damage and other anti-social behaviour.
Its “bobbies”, who are uniformed with magenta vests and caps, provide cover 24/7 for up to 250 houses and businesses on each beat. It promises to have a response at the scene within five minutes for those paying into the scheme.
The alleged burglar was operating in Streatham, south London, where My Local Bobby provides its service to the business improvement district. He allegedly broke into M&S through a reinforced glass window before making off with the meat and alcohol.
The officers are said to have recognised him as a prolific shoplifter and knew his “haunts”.
“He was wearing the same clothing as worn during the burglary. He was detained and immediately admitted the recent burglary and an earlier burglary at the same premises some days before which was also written off by police,” said Mr McKelvey.
The Met Police said they were working to establish the facts of the M&S burglary.
A spokesman said the force was working with retailers to identify “what matters to them, including the safety of shop-based workers and shoplifting”.
On shoplifting, it said it was not realistic for the force to respond to every case but “where a crime is being committed, a suspect is on the scene, and the situation has or is likely to become heated or violent, our call handlers will assess this and seek to dispatch officers where appropriate”.
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