Retail Theft – Self Reporting
Retail Theft Guide
The Retail Theft Guide was created to provide retailers a detailed description for handling shoplifting in the City of Goshen, and direction for filing a report with the Goshen Police Department. The Goshen Police Department is establishing guidelines for Self-Reporting Theft and for Shoplifters taken In-Store’s Custody.
This guide applies to those retail outlets who maintain employee personnel in a capacity commonly referred as Asset Protection or Loss Prevention Staff.
For those businesses who cannot afford to or choose not to employ Asset Protection staff, please call for an officer who will take the steps required for your situation.
Theft / Shoplifting Self-Reporting
The first step is to care for the safety of the customers, employees, and yourself. Always know and follow your store’s policies and procedures and the jurisdictional laws pertaining to the apprehension and detention of individuals.
The Self-Reporting portion of this guide pertains to those shoplifting incidents where the act is discovered at a later time and the offender is no longer present.
The Retail Theft Incident Report will be located at Goshen Police Retail Theft Incident Report form . This report is the only accepted report for Goshen Police Department. The report must be typed with no portions handwritten. Handwritten reports will not be accepted.
All reports shall include the elements of the crime and include: where the item was taken from, the concealment of the item, price tag change, and failing to pay after passing all points of payment. Include any witnesses who may be able to identify the offender and their role which qualifies them for potentially identifying the offender.
The store will be responsible for maintaining their own evidence. It’s required by the Goshen Police Department; the Theft Incident report and store report be emailed to RetailTheft@goshencity.com. Each incident will be emailed separately. TWO copies of video and/or photographs shall all be submitted on DVDs to the Goshen Police Department.
You will receive a reply email with your case number. The case number shall be attached to the DVD and/or supplements delivered to the police department.
Reports must be submitted within 168 hours or 7 days of the discovery of the theft for Investigation Division Review by the Goshen Police Department. The reports must be submitted during business hours of 0800 – 1700 at the front desk of the Goshen Police Department located at 111 East Jefferson Street Goshen, IN 46528.
To use the linked form; click on the link, download to save the blank PDF to your computer, open the form using Adobe Acrobat, use “fill and sign” to complete fields and save the PDF with the date of offense and suspect name. Ex. 08-08-2019 John Doe.
Shoplifters In-Store’s Custody
A phone call should be made to the Elkhart County Communication Center (574) 533-4151 and inform the dispatcher of the situation.
An officer will be dispatched to the store and will make an assessment of the situation. The officer can then make an arrest if there is probable cause for the arrest.
The officer will complete the required case report and decide the next step in the processing of the offender. The officer will need to be provided with the store report and evidence in support of the alleged act. The officer will make a case report even if the offender is released according to department procedures. In the acute incidents where the store report and evidence is not complete upon arrival of the officer, these items must be complete and submitted to an officer by the end of shift. The store report and video/picture evidence is important to have completed immediately for the purposes of the Probable Cause Affidavit and submission to the Office of the Elkhart County Prosecuting Attorney. Please note in the store report what evidence is being submitted in the case.
Indiana Criminal Code
35-43-4-1. Definitions.
(a) As used in this chapter, “exert control over property” means to obtain, take, carry, drive, lead away, conceal, abandon, sell, convey, encumber, or possess property, or to secure, transfer, or extend a right to property.
35-43-4-2. Theft.
(a) A person who knowingly or intentionally exerts unauthorized control over property of another person, with intent to deprive the other person
of any part of its value or use, commits theft, a Class A misdemeanor. However, the offense is:
(1) a Level 6 felony if:
(A) the value of the property is at least seven hundred fifty dollars ($750) and less than fifty thousand dollars ($50,000);
(B) the property is a firearm; or
(C) the person has a prior unrelated
conviction for:
(i) theft under this section; or
(ii) criminal conversion under section
3 of this chapter;
35-43-4-3. Criminal conversion.
(a) A person who knowingly or intentionally exerts unauthorized control over property of another person commits criminal conversion, a Class A misdemeanor.
35-43-4-4. Evidence relating to theft.
(a) The price tag or price marking on property displayed or offered for sale constitutes prima
facie evidence of the value and ownership of the property.
(b) Evidence that a person:
(1) altered, substituted, or transferred a universal product code (UPC) or another product identification code, label, price tag, or price marking on property displayed or offered for sale or hire; or
(2) transferred property displayed or offered for sale or hire from the package, bag, or container in or on which the property was displayed or offered to another
package, bag, or container; constitutes prima facie evidence of intent to deprive the owner of the property of a part of its value and that the person exerted unauthorized control over the property.
(c) Evidence that a person:
(1) concealed property displayed or offered for sale or hire; and
(2) removed the property from any place within the business premises at which it was displayed or offered to a point beyond that at which payment should be made; constitutes prima facie evidence of intent to deprive the owner of the property of a part of its value and that the person exerted unauthorized control over the property.