New York City Mayor Eric Adams hosted a summit on Friday to create a citywide strategic prevention plan to combat retail theft across the Five Boroughs. The summit included the NYPD, the Office of the Attorney General, all five of the city’s District Attorney’s Offices and mental health and social service providers, as well as leaders of the retail industry, representatives from chambers of commerce, various Business Improvement Districts, organized labor, advocacy organizations and statewide and national retail associations — all coming together to discuss policy ideas and creative solutions to tackle the increase in retail theft, which will be released in a report next year.
Topics discussed during Friday’s summit included leveraging technology to combat retail theft, physical security measures to deter theft, surveillance best practices, diversion programs and enhancing existing partnerships with law enforcement.
“Retail stores in the Bronx are being devastated by theft, which brings the threat of violence to store employees and leads to businesses closing and the loss of jobs,” said Bronx County District Attorney Darcel Clark. “This summit was a concrete start to collaboration among all the stakeholders to solve this problem, which affects the community in multiple ways.”
Public safety and building back New York City’s economy to pre-pandemic levels are top priorities for the Adams administration. By convening experienced leaders with a range of perspectives on the issue of retail theft, Adams aimed to identify actionable solutions that are practical for all stakeholders and that serve to enhance public safety while preserving justice.
“The time has come to turn the small business infrastructure into a vehicle for positive change,” said Zaid Nagi, vice president and co-founder of the Yemeni American Merchants Association. “We are ground zero for this issue and many others. Nothing stands between us and empowering our merchants not only to report those who have turned stealing into a lucrative business, but, most notably, to offer assistance that will jump start the recovery to cure debilitating mental problems and drug use and address food scarcity.”
“The summit will yield policy solutions and legislative actions to address business-related losses and crime in New York City, while presenting long-term solutions to support our communities and neighborhoods,” said Lisa Sorin, president of the Bronc Chamber of Commerce. “The Bronx Chamber of Commerce is grateful to Mayor Adams, our district attorneys, and community and business stakeholders for being active participants in resolving barriers to small business success. We are confident that this plan will assist in mitigating a myriad of business challenges.”
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