Bourbon and whisky most stolen retail items

Bourbon and whisky are bolstering a rise in thefts from retail stores across New South Wales in Australia, new crime statistics show.

The state’s released its quarterly crime statistics on Wednesday, which revealed a 7.9% increase in stealing from retail stores, driven by alcohol, mobile phones, electrical appliances and expensive perfumes.

A list of items stolen from retailers in 2015 showed alcohol comprised five of the top 10 items that were more often stolen.

The most frequently stolen item was Bourbon, which was five times more popular than cash and 200 times more popular than rosé wine.

Russell Zimmerman, executive director of the Australian Retailers Association, told The Sydney Morning Herald: “When the economy is a little tougher, and we’re seeing that at the moment, we find retail thefts climb drastically.

“Generally speaking it’s small and inexpensive items like batteries, razor blades, cosmetics, baby food.”

The areas that experienced the largest increase in retail thefts were northern beaches, including Central Coast, Coffs Harbour, Bathurst, eastern suburbs, Sutherland Shire and Tamworth.