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Retail Violent Fatalities Surge Again in 2025, According to D&D Daily Reporting

After a sharp decline in 2024, retail fatalities and violent incidents rose in 2025, with c-stores remaining the industry’s most dangerous environment.

CLEVELAND — March 31, 2026 — The D&D Daily has released its industry-exclusive 2025 Retail Violent Fatalities Report, showing a troubling resurgence in retail violence across the United States.

Based on publicly reported data, the new report found 590 retail fatalities in 2025, up 22% from 2024, reversing last year’s decline and pushing fatality levels back onto an upward trajectory. Fourth quarter fatalities also accelerated sharply, with 139 deaths in Q4 2025, up 35% from Q4 2024.

The report found that innocent victims continue to make up the overwhelming majority of fatalities, with 83% classified as victims and 17% as suspects. Customers represented the largest share of fatalities at 63%, while associates accounted for 19%.

One of the most notable long-term trends remains the concentration of violence around convenience stores, which ranked as the most dangerous retail environment for the ninth consecutive year, accounting for 37% of all fatality incidents.

Geographically, Houston and Memphis emerged as the most targeted cities in 2025, while Texas overtook California as the most targeted state, though the two states have remained the top two for nine straight years.

The report also found that 57% of fatalities occurred in parking lots, compared with 41% inside stores or malls, highlighting the continued vulnerability of exterior retail spaces.

Key Takeaways

• 590 Retail Fatalities in 2025 — Up 22% from 2024

• 139 Q4 Fatalities — Up 35% from Q4 2024

• Customers Account for 63% of Fatalities

• C-Stores Remain #1 Most Dangerous Retailer

• Houston and Memphis Top Most Targeted Cities

• Texas Overtakes California as Most Targeted State

Read the full 2025 report here
 

ORC Groups Avoiding Detection & Maximizing Speed
How ORC Networks Are Adapting to Stronger In-Store Controls

By the D&D Daily staff

As retailers continue investing in stronger in-store loss prevention measures, organized retail crime (ORC) groups are increasingly adapting their tactics to avoid detection and maximize speed.

Across the industry, retailers have expanded the use of locked merchandise cases, receipt verification procedures, enhanced camera coverage, and dedicated asset protection staffing in high-risk locations. While these measures have helped reduce opportunistic theft in some environments, ORC crews are responding with more coordinated and flexible methods.

One growing trend involves smaller, distributed theft events across multiple locations rather than a single large incident. Instead of targeting one store for a significant grab, organized groups may split activity among several nearby stores over a short period of time. This approach can make patterns more difficult to detect at the store level while still generating substantial resale value.

Retailers are also reporting increased use of diversion tactics, where one individual or group creates a distraction for store personnel while another team targets high-value merchandise. Frequently targeted categories continue to include health and beauty products, over-the-counter medications, baby formula, fragrances, razor blades, and premium apparel items due to their strong resale demand.

Another operational challenge is the migration of stolen goods through online marketplaces and informal resale channels. Rapid movement from theft to resale reduces the recovery window and complicates investigations.

In response, many loss prevention teams are placing greater emphasis on enterprise-wide incident tracking, data sharing across locations, and coordination with regional law enforcement task forces. Identifying repeat offender patterns, vehicle information, and crew movement between stores has become increasingly important.

As ORC tactics evolve, retailers are focusing not only on physical security measures but also on cross-functional intelligence gathering to improve visibility and response times across the organization.


Retail Workers Resigning Due to Physical & Verbal Abuse
VoCoVo research flags massive impact of rising crime and customer abuse levels on retail colleagues

88% of retailers have had colleagues resign from their roles because of physical or verbal abuse from a customer, according to research from retail communications specialist VoCoVo.

Its survey, which polled 250 UK retail decision-makers and 503 UK consumers, reveals that crime in the industry is being driven disproportionately by younger shoppers. 47% of adults aged 18-24 admit to stealing from a store, and 35% have abused a retail colleague or another customer in-store.

For many retailers, incidents are no longer isolated events but a regular challenge, with 37% reporting incidents occurring at least once a week. This has led to widespread concern for 86% of retailers.

The prospect of facing abuse at work is not just impacting retailers’ ability to retain staff but also attract new talent - rising levels of crime and abuse is now the third biggest reason why jobseekers would avoid joining the retail industry. This sits behind only unattractive shift patterns and pay.

As incidents become more frequent, the impact is being felt beyond retail teams. 48% of shoppers feel uncomfortable when witnessing abuse in-store, contributing to a negative shopping experience.

In an effort to improve safety for colleagues and maintain a positive experience for shoppers, AI is viewed as a key solution by 67% of retailers. AI assisted reporting and logging tools (35%), automated incident alert systems (33%) and AI powered CCTV (27%) are cited as the technologies most valuable in reducing incidents of crime and abuse.

Beth Worrall, CEO at VoCoVo, says: “Retail colleagues are facing unprecedented levels of stress from verbal and physical aggression, which is eroding morale and making both recruitment and retention increasingly difficult.” retailtechinnovationhub.com


New Theft Trend Hits the UK
The unusual reason why chocolate is now sold under lock and key in the UK

Retailers report losses of more than $310,000, and police are warning the public about the growing trend.

In British supermarkets, a new anti-theft measure is catching shoppers’ attention: chocolate bars are now being stored in locked plastic security boxes. Each bar has its own case, and only store employees can open it. The move comes in response to warnings from law enforcement, which has flagged multiple cases of organized shoplifting targeting supermarkets.

The Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) has echoed police concerns, warning that chocolate has “become a more frequent target for repeat offenders.” Sainsbury’s, the second-largest supermarket chain in the United Kingdom, told the BBC that some of its stores have started using “security boxes on products that are regularly targeted,” including Cadbury Dairy Milk bars at one London location.

The National Police Chiefs’ Council has confirmed that chocolate theft is a real and growing trend, saying police are doing what they can to tackle it. In recent months, authorities have also circulated surveillance footage of chocolate thefts to raise awareness. In one example, West Midlands Police released security camera footage from a store in Stourbridge showing a man stealing trays of chocolate from the premises.

Other police departments have shared similar incidents. In one case, Wiltshire Police released video showing a man dragging an entire shelf loaded with chocolate bars out of a store. Cambridgeshire Police also highlighted the issue in early 2025, reporting that a man had been arrested while allegedly carrying a coat stuffed with chocolate eggs. “Chocolate is one of the high-value items commonly stolen by thieves, along with products such as alcohol, meat, and coffee,” police told the media. en.as.com


2nd Highest Violent Crime Rate in America?
Alaska’s violent crime rate would be second-highest in US, but it’s not part of the latest federal report

724 incidents per 100,000 Alaska residents in 2024 in report earlier this year far above national average of 370.8 in new study, which omits state because it ‘did not meet statistical reliability criteria’

The violent crime rate in Alaska has been among the nation’s highest for many years, but that isn’t the case in a new federal report — but only because the state is among five whose data isn’t considered sufficiently reliable.

Alaska’s rate was 724 for every 100,000 people in 2024, according to a report published in January. That would place the state second in a new report this month that puts the national average at 370.8, behind New Mexico at 752.9 (Tennessee was third at about 600), according to U.S. Justice Department statistics.

The DOJ report released this month about "crime known to law enforcement" excludes five states — Alaska, Arizona, Hawaii, Mississippi and Pennsylvania — because they "did not meet statistical reliability criteria." The specific language cited for Alaska is highly convoluted, but essentially means the figure cited could be off by at least 30% and excludes at least 10% of the state’s population.

Alaska’s rate, reported in January by USAFacts.org, was cited by that website as the highest among states prior to the release of this month’s DOJ report. The state’s second-highest rating behind New Mexico is noted in U.S. News and World Report’s state rankings. juneauindependent.com


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