The Co-Op branch in Camley Street

SOARING crime has turned a Co-op store in to a drug users’ version of the TV game show Supermarket Sweep according to shoppers.

The Camley Street branch of the Co-op – based to the north of the King’s Cross railway lands redevelopment has been targeted so frequently by robbers that customers are comparing it to a “frontier town general store in Wild West,” with ransacked shelves.

One store server has suggested to regulars that shop was losing up to £1,000 a day in stolen stock and a check revealed that this year at least £68,000 worth of alcohol and other high value products had been lost in recent months.

The Co-op did not confirm or deny these figures when approached by the New Journal.

On Monday, customers witnessed one shocking incident which saw a long-standing member of staff threatened with a machete type knife. According to witnesses, the thief went behind the counter, emptied cigarette racks and cleaned out shelves of spirits – while holding aloft the weapon.

A regular customer said: “It’s so troubling that it seems that it will just be a question of time before a life-threatening incident or another serious injury occurs.

“Residents have repeatedly written and reported these ongoing situations directly to the Co-op to no avail.”

Other customers added that crime had noticeably risen in Camley Street and Agar Grove over the past five years – displacing the historic drug-related crime that King’s Cross was once known for.

“The wine section, the target of a huge amount of the thefts, is positioned so it is extremely easy for thieves to enter the shop and quickly fill their rucksacks with bottles of wine and then leave swiftly without being stopped,” said another shopper, who said they had witnessed thieves steal expensive products on a daily basis with the staff powerless to stop them.”

A Co-op spokesperson did not directly comment on the incidents of thefts at the store, but added: “Shoplifting is an ongoing challenge across all retailers and, protecting the safety of colleagues is our clear priority. We know crime can also be a flashpoint for violence against shop workers, which no one should have to face when going about their job.”

The spokesperson added: “We work closely with the police and have successfully campaigned for stricter sentences for violent incidents against all retail workers.

“Co-op uses a wide-range of security measures across its stores including interactive CCTV; body-worn cameras, communication headsets for all frontline colleagues and, covert and non-covert guarding and security”.