"Terrorising" Shoplifting And Anti-Social Behaviour Ryde Concerns Raised At Public Meeting

“Terrorising” shoplifters, people “defecating in bushes” and drivers speeding “like lunatics” were among a number of crime and anti-social behaviour concerns raised at an Isle of Wight public meeting.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Police and Crime Commissioner Donna Jones and Isle of Wight East MP Joe Robertson on Thursday evening (July 17) hosted a discussion covering issues including police visibility, CCTV and retail crime.

The two Conservative politicians were joined at Ryde’s Yelfs Hotel by senior police officers from the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary (HIWC), Jim Pegler, director of the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Violence Reduction Unit and Gareth Lewis, the founder of UK Partners Against Crime.

One Ryde business owner told the meeting of shoplifting “terrorising” retail outlets in the town, adding “businesses are suffering”.

Speaking later in the evening, Marcus Cator, retail crime lead at HIWC, said:

“The frustration for me is the potential perspective that victims aren’t retailers and retailers aren’t victims which is absolutely incorrect.

“One of the biggest problems I have is the underreporting of retail crime.

"If we don’t know what’s going on, we can’t police it. If we don’t know where the hotspots are, we can’t put the resources in the right place.

“But…(in) the British Retail Crime Survey 2025, we are apparently the best force in the country for our response to retail crime. That’s taken an awful lot of work to achieve.”

Another resident complained of drug use, “people defecating in the bushes”, urination and “drunken behaviour” in St Thomas’ Rest Gardens, “right across” from his doorstep.

Andy McDonald, chief inspector at HIWC, said the area, “a place where people go to congregate”, gets “targeted police patrols”.

He pledged to provide support and “not rest on our laurels”.

Mr Cator added it was “really important” to call 101 (non-emergency enquiries) to “keep flooding it with information” and “help build up the picture”.