Shoplifters often show up with shopping lists prepared by their ‘plugs’ – AKA drug dealers

By Guy Page

Vermont has one of the highest shoplifting rates in the nation, and police say a growing share of the thefts are no longer random crimes of opportunity but are tied to drug addiction and organized retail theft.

A new analysis of FBI Crime Data Explorer statistics by Abogados NOW ranks Vermont seventh in the nation for shoplifting when incidents are measured against the number of retail businesses. The state recorded 3,368 reported shoplifting incidents, equal to 794 thefts for every 10,000 retail businesses.

Only New Mexico, Tennessee, Maryland, Oregon, Oklahoma and Virginia ranked higher.

Berlin Police Sgt. Chad Bassette, whose department responds to frequent shoplifting complaints from the Green Mountain Shopping Plaza and other central Vermont retailers, said many offenders now arrive with a specific list of items requested by local drug dealers. Big chain stores like WalMart, Kohls and Five Below are frequent targets.

“I’m seeing a marked increase in retail theft across Vermont, and the problem is evolving,” Bassette said. “Many incidents now follow a pattern: the suspect arrives with a shopping list, sometimes written, sometimes on a phone, of specific household items, food or groceries requested by a local ‘plug’ (drug dealer). The person takes those items in exchange for drugs or to resell for cash.”

Bassette said the trend represents a shift from impulsive shoplifting to demand-driven theft.

“This organized, demand-driven theft is more frequent and more coordinated than the opportunistic shoplifting we handled in the past,” he said.

He said many offenders intentionally keep thefts below the dollar amount that retailers are likely to report.

“Some offenders hit multiple stores in a day, taking only items they can carry and keeping losses under store reporting thresholds, knowing many businesses won’t pursue or report these incidents because the labor required to investigate outweighs the low dollar value,” Bassette said.

Sometimes retail thieves descend on a store en masse, overwhelming store security, as reported by VDC and Berlin Police this April. This is called ‘flashmob’ shoplifting, and while accounting for less than one percent of all shoplifting, has quadrupled in recent years, according to a

Experienced shoplifters also study store operations.

“In talking with offenders, they often know through their own past experience or surveillance the specific stores to hit where they have the greatest chance of getting away with shoplifting,” he said. “They also know, or come close to knowing, the schedules of loss-prevention employees.”

Ironically, one of the simplest deterrents often works best.

“A majority of the thefts with certain offenders have been deterred in the past by employees giving the shoplifter customer service, meaning asking the person constantly if they need help and offering assistance,” Bassette said.

Police and retailers also fight back by shooting video of suspected shoplifters and circulating “have you seen this person?” video online and in local media – including sometimes Vermont Daily Chronicle.

Bassette added that addiction and untreated mental illness drive much of the behavior officers encounter.

“Arrests alone rarely address the root cause,” he said. “Many people cycle between theft, arrest and release without getting treatment.”

Bassette said there are success stories, however, when offenders enter court-ordered treatment or decide they are ready to seek help.

The financial impact on Vermont retailers is substantial. According to Capital One’s retail theft analysis, Vermont retailers lost an estimated $204 million to theft in 2022, or about $383 per resident. The report said Vermont’s retail theft losses per capita were 11.4 percent higher than the national average.

When return fraud is included, estimated retail losses climbed to $426 million, including approximately $25.5 million in lost state sales tax revenue. Furthermore, most of this stolen revenue funds the drug trade, which takes dollars out-of-state and out-of-country, returning human misery, crime, and a drain on public resources for law enforcement and substance abuse prevention and treatment.

Under Vermont law, theft of $900 or more is generally charged as a felony, although many retail thefts involve smaller amounts that remain misdemeanor offenses. Police say repeat offenders often exploit that reality by stealing modest amounts from multiple stores rather than committing a single large theft.