WHEAT RIDGE, Colo. — While other crimes across the city are on the decline, the Wheat Ridge Police Department said it is seeing a spike in theft.
"It could be anything from, you know, getting pick-pocketed to shoplifting," said Alex Rose, public information officer for Wheat Ridge PD.
Last year, Wheat Ridge PD said theft overall was at a five-year high. This year, theft is up 5% citywide.
Rose said 53% of thefts reported to the department came from businesses.
"Whether it's a bigger supermarket or it's a small mom-and-pop shop, that's something that we're trying to target this year and trying to do a better job of curtailing by being proactive," explained Rose.
Rose said part of being proactive includes bigger operations with businesses' crime prevention teams. As a part of an operation with five stores, six people accused of stealing from the Applewood Shopping Center were arrested in a single afternoon.
"The feedback we got from these businesses was fantastic," said Rose. "Frankly, a lot of these folks are just overwhelmed with the amount of people that are just coming in and brazenly walking out with goods without paying for them."
Dane Calkins said he's noticed security changes while shopping. However, he believes stores could take stricter measures to protect their products,.
"You'd walk into a store, and it would be a glass front, and you'd have to tell them what you want," said Calkins of his experience in Chicago.
Rose said the department will conduct more operations in the future to crack down on theft.
"This is not behavior that we're going to tolerate in our city," he said.
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