A TOTAL OF 14 people are due before the Courts of Criminal Justice and Swords District Court today for 23 separate charges relating to recent robberies.

The group of 13 males and one female were arrested as part of Operation Táirge, a criminal investigation by gardaí into crime targeting commercial premises in the north Dublin area.

Gardaí said offenders sometimes can be violent, with some using weapons such as knives and sharp implements, inducing fear and panic among victims.

In one case, petrol was poured onto a counter within a retail premise to invoke fear.

The operation has led to the arrest of 15 people connected to 20 incidents and Gardaí said the intelligence-led operation aims to identify people involved in retail crime.

Organised retail crime is where a number of people act together, targeting outlets to steal significant quantities of goods to sell back into the supply chain through the black market.

It can also involve refund fraud with the purpose of making a financial or material benefit.

The stolen goods are then sold to a “fence” who either sells them at a particular location or in some cases may sell them online in an activity known as e-fencing.

In a statement this week, Minister for Justice Helen McEntee said: “Retail theft is not a victimless crime, and I welcome this new nationwide operation targeting organised retail crime.”

The Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association estimates that retail crime costs retailers more than €1.62 billion each year.

On Wednesday, retailers told politicians that over the last two years there has been an “explosion” of shoplifting, with the levels of crime, violence and anti-social behaviour towards staff at an all-time high. 

A representative of Musgraves, the owner of retail brands SuperValu, Centra and Daybreak, said that there is an “alarming rise” in underage youths who “get a kick out of intimidating staff”.

Among the cohort before the courts today are two juveniles.

The investigation is ongoing and gardaí anticipate further arrests will be made, leading to more charges in the coming weeks.

Includes reporting by Press Association & Jane Matthews