From Dailymail · · 4m
Balaclava Children Steal from Corner Shop
Young children in balaclavas steal from corner shop while parents wait outside.
In brief
Young children in balaclavas steal from corner shop while parents wait outside. Shopkeeper Erdogan Yigitoglu reports children as young as five stealing up to £120 worth of goods from his Bournemouth shop while parents smile and pat them on the head. Originally reported by Dailymail.
Balaclava-clad children steal from corner shop
Extraordinary footage captured by Dorset shopkeeper Erdogan Yigitoglu, 52, shows children as young as five stealing goods worth up to £120 from his Bournemouth shop.
Children trained to steal chocolate bars
The children have been filmed being 'trained' to steal piles of chocolate bars, disposable barbecues and other items from his shop.
Parents smile after thefts
On one occasion, he claimed he watched a mother smile and pat her child on the head in apparent congratulations after a successful haul.
Shopkeeper's mental health impact
Mr Yigitoglu, who has run the shop in Bournemouth, Dorset, for 19 years, says he loses thousands of pounds a year to theft and burglary and that the crime has taken a toll on his mental health.
Social media shaming reduces crime
Over the past six years, however, the father of three has found that publicly shaming thieves on social media and banning them from his shop is the best way to reduce crime.
Children return to parents after thefts
What upset me most was seeing very young children copying this kind of behaviour from adults.
Parents treat thefts as normal
What was even more disturbing was seeing the children take things from the shop and then go back to their mother, while she appeared to treat the situation as if it was normal, even smiling and patting the child on the head.
Shopkeeper's personal concern
As a father myself, I found that extremely upsetting. I would never want children to grow up thinking that stealing is acceptable or something to be proud of.
Shopkeeper's hope for children
I sincerely hope that in the future we see fewer situations like this. My biggest wish is that children are taught the difference between right and wrong and are given the guidance they need to grow up as responsible members of the community.
Apology and payment from shoplifters
Mr Yigitoglu added that around half of the people who he says have been caught shoplifting red-handed in his videos have returned to apologise and pay for the items.
CCTV footage impact
He said: 'From my experience, sharing the CCTV has made a real difference. We have noticed that since we started sharing genuine CCTV footage on social media, the number of incidents has gone down.'
Recent theft incident
Mr Yigitoglu said he recently had an incident in the evening where a group of youngsters came into the shop with their faces covered.
Shopkeeper's fear of theft
He explained: 'Because we could not see their faces, we did not allow them into the shop. They then took a large box of chocolates and ran away. These are the kinds of incidents we are dealing with.
Shopkeeper's frustration
It is extremely frustrating because we are working hard every day, trying to run an honest business and provide a service to the community.
Shopkeeper's mental health impact
All we want is to be able to work without fear and without constantly worrying about whether something is going to be stolen.
Shopkeeper's fear of future
He said: 'Of course these incidents make us fearful. They affect us much more than people might realise. Sometimes we feel that we cannot even breathe properly because we are so worried about what might happen next.'
Shopkeeper's mental health impact
Even when we leave the shop, our minds are still here. We are always thinking, 'Has anything gone missing? Has someone stolen something?' You cannot properly switch off from it.
Shopkeeper's main concern
He said: 'What concerns me most is the effect this can have on the next generation. If young people grow up seeing this behaviour as normal or something to copy, I really worry about where we will be in the future if nothing changes.'
Shopkeeper's call for action
We want people to understand that behind every small business there are real people, real families and years of hard work. My message is simple: we need to stop treating shoplifting as something normal or harmless. We want to see action so that small businesses can feel safe again.
The main idea
Shopkeeper Erdogan Yigitoglu reports children as young as five stealing up to £120 worth of goods from his Bournemouth shop while parents smile and pat them on the head.
