September 23, 2020 3.11 pm This story is over 52 months old

Police go DNA tracing to tackle shoplifters

Tackling Scunthorpe’s shoplifting problem

By Local Democracy Reporter

Humberside Police is using DNA tracing technology to target shoplifters plaguing Scunthorpe.

It’s being used in various stores to allow officers to trace an item back to the scene of a crime.

It will mark different items invisibly, meaning that if a thief is stopped by police, the original location of the item will be traceable.

The initiative was organised by Humberside Police, North Lincolnshire Council and members of the Community Safety Partnership Scheme.

Inspector Richard Mirfin said: “Making Scunthorpe a safe and enjoyable place to be is something that’s really important to us.

“Unfortunately, shoplifters operate in almost every town and city in the world, but here in Scunthorpe we’re doing everything we can to make life as hard as possible for them.

“We wanted to share the news about the new scheme with you today to warn anyone considering targeting shops in the town to think again.”