A SHOPLIFTER has been snared thanks to a new weapon in the armoury of York’s crime-fighting retailers’ group – only hours after it was launched.

Police say they could not have caught the thief, who was arrested in the Acomb area of the city, without the help of a new RACY (Retailers Against Crime in York) radio mast installed at York Racecourse.

Within hours of it coming into operation, it had allowed officers to swoop on a criminal who targeted a shop in Front Street – but who quickly found themselves behind bars.

The mast – funded to the tune of £3,000 by City Of York Council – will help shopkeepers involved in the RACY scheme and police get in touch swiftly to thwart would-be offenders. The aim now is to build on the success of a radio scheme launched in November 2007. The new antennae will boost signals on the RACY radio – an immediate link between shop staff and police that removes the need for retailers to dial 999.

PCSO Craig Boumphrey, a Westfield police community support officer, said: “The council gave us the grant back in October and we were able to put up the mast and launch it last Tuesday.

“The aim of the mast is to offer better coverage and expand on the success it has been to other areas. We had proof of how well the system works when an offender was locked up for theft on the first day of the new mast being launched. We couldn’t have done it without RACY radio.

“Radios are going to be monitored by CCTV, Westfield, Acomb and Holgate Safer Neighbourhood Teams and Response Police. It will help all the shops and businesses in the area share information about any potential shoplifters and known criminals and help everyone keep an eye out for crime”

And as well as trapping criminals, PCSO Boumphrey said the mast could also have other vital roles to play. “Since the mast has been put up, it has helped police locate a high-risk missing person,” he said.

“For example, if a child or another person is missing from home, information like this could be passed through the RACY radio which is provided by Sitelink York.”

RACY was set up ten years ago as a partnership between North Yorkshire Police, City of York Council, York Crime Prevention Panel and local retailers to target gangs of thieves who go shoplifting to earn a living.

More than 200 stores across York belong to the scheme, which co-ordinates crime-fighting campaigns and promotes security among its members.

To learn more about Retailers Against Crime in York, phone 01904 651837.