Elderly shoplifters outnumber teens in Tokyo

The number of people aged 65 or older caught shoplifting in Tokyo has been rising, with the elderly outnumbering those 19 or younger in 2012 for the first time since 1989, when officials started compiling comparable date. Police officials believe shoplifting by the elderly is on the rise because more seniors are living alone and in poverty without relatives to support them. In 1999, Tokyo police arrested 336 seniors for shoplifting, accounting for 6.0 percent of all shoplifters. The number jumped to 3,321 in 2012, making up 24.5 percent of the total.