Shopper's Cop
The Shopper’s Cop Program was established on the premise that a large segment of our population does not contact their local police department for information and services they may require. Two primary reasons are: 1. They are not aware of the pertinent information and services that police provide, and 2. a lack of convenient opportunity to access police personnel. It is fair to assume that most adults (and teenagers) shop at local retail stores on a weekly basis. Given this information, we developed a strategy to maximize the police department’s ability to interact with community members on a personal level. Several times per month, you may see one of our uniformed officers at any of the following stores to answer various questions the public may have: Mardens, Hannaford Elm Plaza, Hannaford JFK Mall, Shaws and Wal-Mart Although the officer will not be there for store security reasons, the officer’s presence will be a deterrent for would-be shoplifters and provide an additional level of personal safety for shoppers and staff. The store can utilize the officer when police intervention is required, but the officer will not initiate any type of law enforcement activities unless asked to do so by the store’s management (or) if an incident occurs where personal safety is at risk.