Bolton Police have arrested three suspected shoplifters within 20 minutes of each other, recovering a ‘large amount of stock’.

According to GMP Bolton South, officers pursued two men, aged 40 and 35, on foot, before arresting them on suspicion of theft from Poundland in the town centre.

Another man was then arrested nearby on suspicion of an unrelated theft offence from Sainsbury’s, joining a further two suspected shoplifters in custody who police are processing following shoplifting arrests yesterday evening (Monday, July 15).

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In a post on GMP’s Bolton South page, officers said: “It has been a busy day in Bolton Town Centre today with three shoplifters arrested within 20 minutes.

“Thanks to concise information being passed from our partners within the Central Bolton Crime Partnership, officers were able to arrive on scene and detain all suspects, recovering a large amount of stock.

“Two males (aged 40 & 35) were arrested on suspicion of theft from Poundland after a short foot pursuit.

“Another male was arrested nearby on suspicion of a separate theft offence from Sainsbury's.

“All remain in custody for questioning by officers.

“A further two shoplifters are already in custody being processed as a result of arrests on suspicion of shoplifting yesterday evening.”

Earlier this year, Bolton’s shopkeepers said they had faced abuse with shoplifting ‘rife’.

Last summer, GMP launched a ‘high street squad’ in Bolton to tackle robberies, burglaries, and shoplifting.

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Data released in April shows that the number of shoplifting offences recorded by police in England and Wales has risen to the highest level in 20 years.

A total of 430,104 offences were logged by forces last year, up more than a third (37 per cent) on the 315,040 recorded in the previous 12 months to December 2022.

The figure is the highest since current records began in the year to March 2003, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), which described the increase as “notable”.

The figures also show the number of offences involving theft from the person stood at 125,563 in 2023, up 18 per cent from 106,606 in 2022 and is the highest level since 2004 (137,154).

The number of robberies recorded rose by 13 per cent last year to 81,094, up from 71,983 in 2022 – although this is still 26 per cent lower than the year ending March 2003 (110,271).

If you have a story, I cover the whole borough of Bolton. Please get in touch at jack.fifield@newsquest.co.uk.