REHOBOTH BEACH, Del. - Reported shoplifting incidents are down in Rehoboth Beach, according to the police department, but some local businesses still see it as a significant problem.
"We lose a ton of merchandise every year. I mean, it's constant. It happened when you went out to set up. They take something out of the box, throw the box into somewhere else, and walk out the door with it," Pam Ivens, head cashier at Gidgets Gadgets, said.
At Candy Kitchen, employees told CoastTV that shoplifting at this time of year results in a monthly loss of about $100.
"A lot of the time, when we're closing up the shop, and we're looking at all the inventory, a lot of the products have been opened, and the stuff inside of it is gone, which also creates a headache for people who buy these when we didn't realize it was shoplifted, and then they have to return it. We have to give them their money back, and it's just a real mess for everyone involved," Aidan Wiggins, cashier at Candy Kitchen, said.
Police say that compared to last year, during the period from Memorial Day weekend to Aug. 7, they have recorded just 15 cases this year compared to 28 cases last year.
"Between the technology and the fact that we do pay attention to statistical data when it comes to scheduling officers and putting them in positions in different patrol areas, and we try to put them in a position so that the resources that we do have are used to our advantage the best that we can," Captain Jamie Riddle of the Rehoboth Beach Police Department, said.
Police report that they have a good track record of success in catching shoplifters when incidents are actually reported, but that doesn't always happen.
"In general, we're about 33 percent successful in apprehending the suspects. So we do have those means with technology. As technology advances, it becomes easier for us to catch people as long as it's reported quickly. A lot of times people wait 30 minutes to report it, which puts us at a disadvantage," Capt. Riddle said.
Ivens says that at Gidgets Gadgets, they take extra precautions to cut down on theft, yet they still estimate losing between $700 and $1,000 in merchandise each summer.
"We have a second person come in, in the evenings when it seems to be when most of it happens, though this was at noon, to walk the store off the back area and just kind of keep an eye out or to let the customers know there is another employee present," Ivens said.
Other businesses CoastTV spoke with, like MG Fashion, say that so far this summer, they have caught three shoplifting incidents, but they believe there could be more incidents at the store that have gone unnoticed.