CONCERNS have been raised about retail crime taking place in the city centre amid claims youth are coordinating thefts on social media. 

Residents said there have been various incidents of anti-social behaviour in shops around the area in recent months. The issue came to light at a Garnethill Neighbourhood Watch (GNW) meeting on Tuesday, September 3,

Bill Beckett, who was chairing the meeting, says he has been made aware of a group on Facebook with around 200 members that has been used by teens to "coordinate" going out in groups to steal from shops in the city centre. 

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It is believed the people in the groups are from various locations across the central belt with Glasgow being one place they choose to frequent. 

Mr Beckett says that there has been theft of alcohol in targeted locations and there have also been attacks on staff with hot spots for such incidents including Tesco Express on Sauchiehall Street and at St Enoch Square. 

He also noted occasions where young people have been caught in stores with weapons including an axe and machete.

Earlier this year in an exclusive interview with the Glasgow Times Lynn Ratcliff, Chief Superintendent for Greater Glasgow, said "concerning" youth violence is a priority for her and her team. 

She said: "There have been some tragic events recently with people losing their lives in the city because of violent crime. 

"So, for me and the teams that work across Glasgow, that is very much a focus for us right now.

"Violent crime is on the increase across the country. And I suspect that there are a number of different factors that contribute to that. So, what we see in Glasgow is unfortunately mirrored across the country.

"The culture that we saw in the past of weapon carrying is beginning to creep back in and that is concerning."

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In 2022, Chief Inspector Natalie Carr also told the Glasgow Times "we won't tolerate youth disorder". 

Highlighting it was a small minority causing problems, she said: "Some of the things we’ll be working on in the next wee while is around youth disorder.

"There’s been a lot of young people congregating in the city centre, and it’s really important we don’t victimise all young people because they’re not all there to cause trouble, however, there is that small minority who unfortunately we need to robustly police."

She added: "We won’t tolerate anti-social behaviour but it’s really important to me that we engage with these young people and find out a wee bit more about them, what brings them to the city centre, and what we can do to support them."

However, speaking at Tuesday's GNW meeting, Sgt Amer Mohammed says there is no particular age group involved in retail crime in the city centre. 

Chief Inspector John McCartin said: "We work closely with partners in the retail and business sectors in the city centre to deter, prevent and investigate retail crime.

"Where we identify business which are being targeted by shoplifters, we have trained officers who can attend and carry out security surveys and offer advice around prevention.

"We are all too aware of the impact crime can have on victims and their families. Everyone has the right to go to their place of work and carry out their duties without fear of being subjected to violence, abuse or intimidation.

"We would encourage those employed within the retail sector to come forward and report any criminal activity directed towards them, with the assurance all reports will be thoroughly investigated."