"This year, law enforcement officials in Boston put a greater emphasis on retail theft enforcement, leading to a dramatic increase in the number of shoplifting arrests. But as officials tout those year-end statistics, a City Council member is publicly calling for the police to step up enforcement efforts even more. In 2025, shoplifting arrests were up 261% compared to the five-year average, officials said at a community meeting focused entirely on retail theft that was held at the beginning of December."
"There was a 113% increase in overall retail theft arrests this year compared to last, Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox said at a press conference last week. Councilor Ed Flynn, who has been continuously sounding the alarm about retail theft this year, cited some of these statistics in a letter he sent to Cox on Monday. He asked that more resources be dedicated to combating retail theft and advocated for stricter policies for offenders."
In 2025, shoplifting arrests in Boston increased 261% compared with the five-year average. Law enforcement emphasized retail-theft enforcement, producing dramatic rises in arrests. Overall retail-theft arrests rose 113% this year compared with last year, and shoplifting arrests rose 116% compared with last year. Councilor Ed Flynn urged Police Commissioner Michael Cox to dedicate more resources to combating retail theft and to adopt stricter policies for offenders. Flynn requested targeted enforcement against repeat, high-volume, and violent shoplifters and argued that lighter shoplifting penalties have encouraged repeat offenders and sophisticated criminals. He also cited policy changes enacted by the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office in 2019.
Read at Boston.com
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