DRUGS FEATURE: The Evening Advertiser has joined forces with police to launch a telephone hotline enabling people to report suspected drug dealers - and already it is getting results. TAMASH LAL reports on its progress after 24 hours and on how addicts turn to theft to fund their habit

EACH WEEK, addicts steal thousands of pounds worth of goods from shops in Swindon to buy drugs.

Large supermarkets can lose up to £20,000 a year to shoplifters who steal to satisfy their cravings.

Small stores are targeted too, which can be a major problem for shopkeepers trying to earn a living.

Often addicts will steal branded goods to sell for cash to buy drugs.

Each week, addicts swipe up to £400 worth of goods from Tesco's Parade Road store.

Addicts usually take wine and spirits, which are often stolen to order.

Store manager Chris Wollerton, 34, said the cost to the business was passed on to customers. "It has a massive effect on the company," he said. "We are trying to run a business, and this hits our profits.

"We have to keep prices artificially high to cover the cost to us, and this is passed on to the customer.

"We aim to be as cheap as we can, but we have to build the cost of shoplifting into our prices."

Addicts are also often aggressive to staff. Mr Wollerton said: "The abuse is pretty unpleasant. My staff don't come to work to face this kind of thing."

Earles newsagents in Newport Street, Old Town is typical of the kind of small stores targeted by addicts.

The store had a problem earlier this year, but the thieving has eased after a police clampdown in the area.

Addicts would meet dealers at the telephone boxes on the corner of Newport Street and Devizes Road, near the store.

Shop assistant Rich Rogers, 17, said: "You could see them gathering on the corner, then they would come into the shop. They looked like a walking mess, and could be pretty intimidating because they would come in gangs."

On one occasion, addicts stole cash from the till while distracting a cashier. But they would usually steal smaller items.

Mr Rogers said: "The fact that they were hanging around the shop put other customers off coming in, which hit the business."

Adrian Hayward, 57, who runs Victoria News in Victoria Road, Old Town, is also regularly hit by addicts.

He said: "It is a problem for all small businesses like mine in Swindon.

"There is a small nucleus of people that I have banned from the store for stealing, and a fair proportion are drug addicts. The problem is that they know if they are caught, the courts just won't do anything."