A SHOPWATCH scheme has been hailed a success after catching its first thief within days of being set up.

Ten traders in Blatchington Road and George Street, Hove, are now able to warn each other about shoplifters operating in the area.

Their shops are linked by radio to each other and to Hove police so they can report incidents.

The town's CCTV cameras are then used to track suspects.

Within three days of the new ShopWatch network going live, community beat officer PC Bill Bond heard the the manager of Superdrug broadcast the description of a suspect being chased towards Church Road.

Their store detective managed to snatch the stolen goods back from the fleeing man but then lost sight of him. PC Bond alerted the CCTV control room and staff there followed the suspect and guided the officer to him. A man has since appeared in court charged with theft.

PC Bond said: "It has taken quite a while to get the scheme up and running but it has already proved a success.

"The shops are linked by radio and I carry an extra handset so that I can monitor any descriptions they put out of suspects.

"This particular incident involved a tin of Quality Street being stolen from Superdrug.

"We were able to track the

suspect on the CCTV cameras and saw him go into a pub before I caught up with him and arrested him nearby. I hope that as a result of this success other traders will now join the scheme."

Shops taking part include Boots, Woolworth's, B-Wise, Co-op, New Look, Dorothy Perkins, WH Smith and Wizzard.

There are plans to provide a similar scheme for smaller traders in the area who cannot afford the radio equipment.

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