According to FBI crime figures released last month, property crime increased slightly countrywide in 2022 and is negatively affecting companies.
In Charlotte, North Carolina’s NoDa arts neighbourhood, a small business owner told Fox News that his store had been broken into eight times in a short period of time.
Bryan Moore, the proprietor of NoDa Bodega, called the area “an appealing place to live” with “a lot of, I think, more affluent people.”
But Moore said that his profit margin is being negatively impacted by the repairs brought on by crime.
“You comin’ in getting a hundred bucks, and we’re having to spend $500 or $600 to replace a door,” Moore told Fox News.
Four times this year, according to the owner of Artisan’s Palate, a local wine bar and restaurant, her business has been attacked.
After repairing yet another broken door, the owner—who wished to remain anonymous—told Fox News she was “fed up” and that she had no idea what more could be done to stop the break-ins.
New bars, restaurants, and condos are springing up all over the NoDa neighbourhood. The business association of NoDa has reported that patrols have been stepped up and that residents are being asked to report any instances of lights out in the neighbourhood.
Property crime is generally associated with unemployment and poverty, according to criminologist Jay Fortenbery of North Carolina Wesleyan University.
“They make a rational choice depending on the weight of the crime, the punishment versus the rewards,” Fortenbery said. “Are the rewards more beneficial than the punishments right now and what are the odds of getting caught?”
Moore does not believe that the illegal conduct will end soon. “At this point, it’s just become the nature of doing business,” he explained.
According to the FBI’s 2022 crime statistics, just 14% of stolen goods were recovered.
