Police in Gloucester have arrested a number of offenders as part of a crackdown on shoplifters over Christmas.

Operation Blitzen will see officers patrolling the city centre into the new year with police conducting high-visibility patrols alongside plain clothed colleagues in areas such King's Walk, Eastgate shopping centre and Gloucester Quays.

As well as supporting businesses, officers will also be dealing with issues of anti-social behaviour.

Inspector Emma MacDonald said: "While this year's Christmas will clearly be very different, we are still expecting Gloucester to be busy with shoppers over the next two weeks.

"Shoplifting is extremely costly for retailers, who have already had a tough year. We will be working around the town to help protect people and deal with opportunistic shoplifting and anti-social behaviour.

"Christmas can be a stressful time and we want to help people enjoy their preparations as much as possible.

"Anyone who has concerns about anything they see whilst Christmas shopping can speak to a member of the team who is on patrol or at one of our engagement vehicles as we will be more than happy to help."