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WASHINGTON — The Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) is partnering with the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) to combat retail crime, the groups said Monday.
The two organizations said they will develop educational resources, facilitate information sharing and enhance collaboration between leading retailers and law enforcement agencies to combat organized retail crime and rampant theft in retail stores.
Central to the RILA-IACP partnership is addressing under-reporting of retail crime and deepening collaboration between retailers and law enforcement. RILA and IACP will work together to develop training, best practices, resources, and guidebooks for retailers and law enforcement on retail crime topics.
“Through our work with the Vibrant Communities Initiative, retailers and law enforcement have experienced firsthand the power of collaboration in addressing complex community challenges like organized retail crime,” RILA Senior EVP of Retail Operations Lisa LaBruno said. "As we broaden our ecosystem of stakeholders committed to working together in the fight against retail crime, IACP represents a vital partner in this groundbreaking effort to restore vibrancy to our communities
"We’re confident that through this partnership, both retailers and police leadership will find value in our collective resources and expertise and the result will be a united and effective community front against retail crime.”
One of the reasons fighting retail crime is so difficult is because perpetrators often cross jurisdictions as they move from store to store, IACP President Wade Carpenter said.
“Operating across multiple jurisdictions makes it difficult for any single law enforcement agency to recognize the extent of their operations and highlights the need for cooperation between police agencies and retailers. We look forward to working with RILA to develop new resources and training that will allow our combined memberships to successfully combat this growing challenge.”
