Police are zeroing in on recidivist thieves, arresting three people allegedly responsible for stealing more than $90,000 of supermarket goods across a range of inner-city suburbs.
In one of the thefts, it's alleged one of the men threatened a supermarket worker with a box cutter, before jumping the barriers and fleeing the store.
The group allegedly committed 66 different crimes between 5 January and 23 July across Brighton, Bentleigh, Carnegie, Caulfield, Chelsea, Docklands, Elsternwick, Highett, Kensington, Malvern, Melbourne CBD, Mentone, Mitcham, Mordialloc, Port Melbourne, Southbank, South Melbourne, St Kilda and Toorak.
Some of these incidents include:
- On 15 May, the group is accused of stealing more than $700 worth of clothing and underwear from a supermarket in St Kilda, before retuning five minutes later to steal a box of cookies.
- Two days later, they allegedly stolen more than $1000 worth of electric toothbrushes from a supermarket in Toorak.
- On 10 July, they allegedly stole more than $500 worth of clothing and underwear from a supermarket in Carnegie, before the 45-year-old man attempted to punch a loss prevention officer before fleeing.
- On 23 July, the trio allegedly stole more than $4000 worth of clothing and underwear from a supermarket in Middle Brighton, where the 45-year-old man allegedly threatened a staff member with a box cutter.
The items allegedly stolen include:
- Approximately $28,000 worth of clothing and underwear. Almost $12,000 worth was allegedly stolen during July alone.
- Approximately $10,000 worth of razor blades
- Approximately $9000 worth of alcohol
- More than $4000 worth of cologne
- More than $1000 worth of electric toothbrushes
- Baby formula
- Groceries
- Cosmetics
57 of the incidents were unreported and were only discovered thanks to this proactive investigation by local police, where a keen-eyed constable started connecting dozens of the alleged thefts with one another due to similarities in offending.
Following investigations, Bayside Uniform police executed a search warrant at a unit inside an apartment complex on Park Street, South Melbourne, from about 9am on Tuesday 26 August, where they arrested a 33-year-old woman.
Inside the unit, police seized an imitation firearm, and several items of clothing relevant to the investigation, as well as a record book allegedly detailing the on-sale of the stolen items.
The woman was charged with 54 counts of shop steal, one count of possess imitation firearm, and one count of commit indictable offence on bail.
She was bailed to Melbourne Magistrates' Court on 23 September.
Two men aged 45 and 48, also from South Melbourne, who were on remand for unrelated matters, were charged over the spate of alleged thefts while in custody.
The younger man was charged with 49 counts of shop steal, and one count each of prohibited person possess imitation firearm, unlawful assault, make threats to kill, and commit indictable offence on bail.
The older man was charged with 36 counts of shop steal, one count of possess imitation firearm, and one count of commit indictable offence on bail.
They will appear in Melbourne Magistrates' Court on 28 November.
Theft from a retail store continues to hit record highs across the state, up almost 40% in the year ending March 2025. This is a greater reflection of the extent of retail crime, as large-scale retailers continue to improve their reporting practices.
Quotes attributable to Bayside Uniform Police Sergeant Shosh Lew:
"Retail theft isn't a victimless crime - it's not just about a few lost items from large department stores or supermarkets.
"When stores lose money and goods to thieves, those costs can result in higher prices at the checkout for the rest of us.
"This acts as an important reminder for business owners to report thefts to police. Even if it's a small item, it all adds up - as we've seen during this investigation.
"Detectives are sharing intelligence across the state to dismantle retail theft syndicates. In addition to this, police are also regularly engaging with key retailers to outline Victoria Police's response to the issue, as well as encourage greater target hardening measures in stores."
