The total number of reported physical crime cases increased by 4.1 per cent to 10,106 in the first half of 2024, from 9,704 in the same period in 2023. According to a press release by the Singapore Police Force (SPF), in the first half of 2024, the crimes of concern included shop theft, outrage of modesty, voyeurism and theft in dwelling.
Shop theft constituted the highest proportion of reported cases amongst all physical crime cases. There were 2,027 cases of shop theft in the first half of 2024, marking an increase of 178 from 1,849 cases in the first half of 2023. In addition, the number of shop theft cases in the first half of 2024 accounted for 20.
1 per cent of the 10,106 crimes reported. More than half of the shop theft cases involved losses of below S$50. Shop theft also remains one of the top offences for youths arrested during this period, the SPF added.
For cases involving the arrest of youths, the majority of shop theft cases occurred at supermarkets, beauty shops, personal care/health and wellness shops. Items typically stolen included personal care products, food and beverage, and cosmetics. The SPF said they have been actively engaging the public across all age groups to raise awareness of the consequences of committing shop theft through various engagement platforms.
These include school talks, youth engagement programmes, an initiative called Coffee with a Cop , house visits, and crime prevention talks jointly led by the SPF and the National Crime Prevention C.