The National Institute for Crime Prevention and the Reintegration of Offenders (NICRO) says tough economic conditions in the country have led to people committing petty crimes like shoplifting.
Statistics released by the organisation show that more than 6 000 shoplifters were arrested across the country between 2021 and 2023.
NICRO’s Clinical Unit Coordinator Magda Reynolds says while different people steal for different reasons, the majority of the cases that they have dealt with have been as a result of poverty.
“It is definitely economic conditions, but together with that, we also see shoplifting driven by substance issues, shoplifting driven by mental health issues, even physical health issues. If there’s perhaps a problem with medication that’s being taken or people that just plainly make a mistake, for example you absent-mindedly forget to have something scanned. So, all of these things together form the statistics that we’ve seen, but the largest part of that statistics is definitely being driven by the current economic climate,” says Reynolds.
High rate of hunger and poverty is driving a spike in shoplifting in South Africa
