Shop thefts have risen by nearly 47% over the past decade, figures from the Central Statistics Office show, with significant increases recorded in almost every garda division across the country.
The only divisions to see a decrease over that period were Cork West and Dublin’s North-Central region, which includes Mountjoy, Store Street and Bridewell garda stations.
Areas with the largest increases in the same period include Meath (138%), Sligo/Leitrim (111%) and Galway (96%).
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Gardaí say that reporting of shoplifting increased significantly during 2024 and has remained at that higher level into 2025.
In the first three months of this year alone, more than 8,000 incidents of theft from shop were reported, with nearly 2,000 arrests and more than 4,750 charges or summonses issued. Gardaí say many of those charges relate to offences committed last year.
Tonight, Upfront with Katie Hannon hears from those directly affected, as theft, intimidation and violence become a daily reality for many in the retail sector.
Among them is retail worker Himanshu Kumar, who made headlines last October when CCTV footage emerged of him being robbed with a large knife at a shop in Dundrum, Co Dublin.
He says it all happened very fast.
“Two guys came with their faces covered,” Mr Kumar said in an interview prior to the programme.
“My colleague was cleaning the coffee machine, and I was counting the till. The other guy came in over to the till – he flashed the knife at me and told me to just open the till,” Mr Kumar added.
“I thought he could do anything to me, so I just waited and turned the key on the till”.
Mr Kumar says the man took “around €1,500”.
“We were terrified,” he said.
“I was thinking I could do something, but my sixth sense was not to as they could do anything with the knife.
“The knife was bigger than the knife we use in the deli,” he says.
Mr Kumar believes there should be a stronger garda presence in the area.
“There has to be more patrolling in this area. Teenagers are taking advantage of the law here.
“They know guards can’t do anything – they know the law favours them because they’re under 18”.
Calls for change
Mike Gleeson, who runs five Spar shops in Limerick, including two with filling stations, says losses from theft last year were “in the hundreds of thousands”.
“Since about 2019, things went off the Richter scale,” he said ahead of the programme.
“The biggest problem is the system for penalising [people who steal] has broken down.
“The guards do catch them left, and right and centre – but it falls apart once it enters the courts system.
“We don’t have enough prison spaces and we’re not going to have, so we have to bring out a system where people are sanctioned in a different way.”
Mr Gleeson would like to see compensation paid directly by those who steal.
“They have to be penalised through their pockets from source,” he explains.
“We’re looking for payback legislation to be introduced. If you commit a crime, you get a fine like a parking fine.
“If you stole €50 you should pay a €50 fine and €50 as compensation too – we should double it just to have a deterrent.
“It should be taken from source of income – it’s the only way to hit them in the pocket.”
Mr Gleeson also says fines for those under 18 should be paid by their parents or guardians.
In response to growing concerns from the retail sector, a bill aimed at creating specific offences for assaulting, threatening, harassing or abusing retail workers is currently at second stage in the Seanad.
An Garda Síochána has also launched Operation Táirge, a national initiative targeting shop theft and related offences.
Meanwhile, the Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association estimates that retail crime is now costing businesses more than €1.62 billion annually.
Upfront with Katie Hannon examines these issues and hears from those on the front line tonight at 10.35pm on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player.
