Expect increased police presence at major shopping centres during holiday season, Winnipeg police say

Posted on December 4, 2024 by Peggy

Shoppers can expect to see more officers at retail hubs in the city, Winnipeg police announced at the city’s largest mall on Wednesday morning.

There will be an increase in plainclothes officers on the streets and in malls, in addition to uniformed police officers, police said at a news conference at Polo Park on Wednesday.

This comes as part of the retail theft initiative in Winnipeg, which started in November 2023 and expanded in June 2024 with extra funding from the provincial government.

The retail theft initiative uses crime analysts to identify areas with the highest concentration of crime and where people congregate the most, police said. Officers are then assigned based on where the highest need is.

Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays are the days with the highest number of shoppers, so more officers will be used on those days, police said.

Police also highlighted the importance of shoppers watching out for their safety, and collaborating with police by keeping them informed of suspicious or illegal activity.

Winnipeg police targeting shoplifters after retail thefts spike

1 year ago

Duration 2:29

Winnipeg police are stepping up efforts to curb shoplifting after seeing a spike in retail theft during the first eight months of the year. Police responded to 3745 incidents of shoplifting from January to August, a 44 per cent increase compared with the same time period in 2022, officials said at a news conference Monday.