By Grant Shepherd

SYDNEY, NSW: Police have arrested 18 people following an operation targeting shoplifting, stealing and other property offences in a Mount Druitt shopping centre late last week.

 ‘Operation Countdown’ was established to target retail property theft from stores within a large shopping centre in Mount Druitt. This was a joint operation between plain clothes police and loss prevention officers from retail stores.

On Thursday 11 March, 18 people were arrested, two men were charged, ten people were issued with criminal infringement notices for larceny and six young people were given official warnings or cautions.

One of the arrests occurred to a 42-year-old Rooty Hill man after he was seen arguing with a security officer outside a supermarket. It is alleged that the man was yelling, swearing and threatening the guard when police intervened.

When officers went to arrest the man he allegedly ran away and fell over before resisting the officer’s attempts to arrest him. He was later taken to Mount Druitt Police Station and charged with offensive language in a public place, behave in an offensive manner in a public place, resist officer in the execution of duty and destroy or damage property.

The second man was arrested after he was observed to be acting suspiciously in a number of retail stores. The 27-year-old Willmot man was taken to Blacktown Police Station and charged with goods in custody suspected of being stolen.

According to the police report, the operation resulted in the recovery of $1,500 worth of stolen property.

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