Retail Theft and Safety
Coles and Crime Stoppers are working together to help prevent the community from falling victim to theft and scams.
If you have information about suspicious behaviour you can share it with us anonymously.
Tell Us. They’ll Never Know.
Organised Retail Crime
Organised retail crime (ORC) involves theft carried out by sophisticated and coordinated criminal groups. Unlike individual shoplifting, organised retail crime involves a larger network of criminals, and the stolen goods are not intended for personal use.
Retail theft, especially when it’s organised or occurs on a large scale, has several significant impacts:
- Product availability or accessibility
- Diversion of police resources
- Increase risk of violence
- Increase of interrelated crime
Organised retail crime fuels other forms of organised crime by supplying funds and resources to criminal groups.
Theft from Motor Vehicles
Keep Your Items Safe!
This type of crime typically involves smashing windows, forcing open doors, or exploiting unlocked vehicles to access valuables left inside.
It is important to note that theft from cars can occur in various locations, ranging from carparks to residential areas, particularly at night.
Download our flyer to learn how to keep yourself safe.
Remember to physically check that your car is locked before you step away.
Never leave valuables in your car. Leaving valuables in your car is not worth the time, cost, and effort of replacing them.
Remove any documents that could lead to a risk of identity theft.
Where possible, park in well-lit areas to reduce concealment opportunities.
Ensure you close your car windows every time your car is parked.
Report thefts of and from motor vehicles to the Police Assistance line on 131 444. In an emergency, always call Triple Zero on 000.
Remember to physically check that your car is locked before you step away.
Never leave valuables in your car. Leaving valuables in your car is not worth the time, cost, and effort of replacing them.
Remove any documents that could lead to a risk of identity theft.
Where possible, park in well-lit areas to reduce concealment opportunities.
Ensure you close your car windows every time your car is parked.
Report thefts of and from motor vehicles to the Police Assistance line on 131 444. In an emergency, always call Triple Zero on 000.
Helping to Keep the Community Safe, Together.
A gift card scam typically involves scammers tricking or threatening people into buying gift cards, before stealing the value of the card. Often the gift cards are from reputable companies such as Coles, Apple, Myer, Google Play and Steam.
Once the scammer has used the value of the gift card it is often impossible to track. This leaves the victim at a financial loss, distressed and embarrassed. It is estimated that less than five percent of victims report being scammed.
How to Report
Resources
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