Drones used to combat retail crime in Bensalem

BENSALEM TOWNSHIP, Pa. – When the Bensalem Township Police Department decided to crack down on a 35 percent increase in retail crime over the past two years, police pulled out all the stops.

Police held a summit with business owners to educate them. Police have partnered with the Bensalem Township Economic Development Corporation and business owners to launch Bensalem Secure.

They increased patrols and published a weekly list of retail suspects. And they took to the skies.

Police use drones to combat retail theft.

Detective Sgt. Glenn Vandegrift said a small fleet of drones was quickly launched after a local retail theft was reported.

He said the crowds always arrived within two minutes as the cameraman panned the camera to find someone matching the suspect's description.

In one case, information about the theft of a bicycle, along with the suspect's location, was passed to the responding officer, who made the arrest less than a mile from the store that was attacked, Vandegrift said.

“Our clearance rate for retail thefts is 62 percent. “That is significantly more than the national average,” he added.

In Bensalem Township — which is just a stone's throw from Philadelphia — retail thefts skyrocketed, from 484 thefts in 2019 to nearly 900 the next year.

Vandegrift said police have zero tolerance for tackling retail crime, whether it's $30, $300 or $3,000.