A prolific shoplifter has become the first offender in Merseyside to be fitted with a GPS monitoring tag as part of a crackdown on repeat retail crime.
Callan Bennett, 38, from Liverpool, was jailed for 18 weeks and handed a three-year Criminal Behaviour Order (CBO) after being convicted of 27 counts of shop theft across the city.
The offences took place between January 14 and July 7, 2026, targeting a number of stores.
As part of the CBO, Bennett has been fitted with a Buddi GPS tag, which allows police to monitor his movements and receive alerts if he enters areas from which he has been banned.
His order prohibits him from entering any Tesco, Home Bargains or Co-op store in Merseyside, as well as specified Ryman’s, Brownlow Hill, B&M, Penketh Drive and Morrisons Daily locations on West Derby Road.
He is also prohibited from entering any shop or business after being issued with a store banning notice.
GPS monitoring to tackle repeat theft
The Buddi tag provides police with real-time location monitoring and creates a daily data trail that can be mapped to show an offender’s movements.
Merseyside Police said bespoke exclusion zones can be built around the conditions of a CBO, with alerts generated if an offender breaches those restrictions or attempts to tamper with the device.
Chief Superintendent Natalie Perischine, Area Commander for Liverpool, said the technology would allow police to monitor prolific offenders and intervene when exclusion zones are breached.
The force said the system could also help speed up investigations by establishing whether a tagged offender was in the vicinity of a reported theft at the time it occurred.
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Pilot reported reduction in shop theft
The Buddi tag was previously piloted by Sussex Police, with operational data from its first two case studies showing a 65% reduction in shop theft offences — from 26 in the three months before tagging to nine in the three months afterwards.
Merseyside Police said electronic monitoring can provide independent evidence of whether CBO conditions have been followed, while also acting as a deterrent to further offending.
Chief Supt Perischine said exclusion-zone alerts could allow officers and partners to identify potential breaches earlier, enabling intervention before further thefts or confrontations take place.
The force added that the technology could also help exclude tagged offenders from investigations where location data shows they were not in the area when an offence occurred.
The Buddi tag is intended for prolific offenders whose repeated criminal behaviour has a significant impact on communities, including financial losses for retailers and fear and intimidation among retail workers and business owners.