 Life is good all this month at Appalachian Wireless. Get the LG G5 for just one penny with sign-up or renewal of a two-year service agreement. That's almost $100 off the regular price. Better service, bigger savings. That's today's Appalachian Wireless. The Pikeville Police Department is teaming up with area businesses in order to work together to stop shoplifters. Today, law enforcement met with those in retail to discuss the new initiative, Business Alert. The Business Alert group is to allow local businesses to be able to share information on shoplifting crimes with police and other businesses in hope of combating shoplifting crimes. All these other stores that's getting hit by these people can relay this information to a central hub. That way we can see them, maybe we can identify them, if we can't identify them, someone else that's been victimized by them can identify them. Chief Edmund says over the last three years shoplifting has become an epidemic that keeps growing. He says he wants to stop it now before it gets worse. It's not just a shoplifting to feed your family now, you know, like it once was back in the day, you know, come in and take an item that you needed or whatever because you didn't have the money to spend on it. These people are coming in from what we're seeing. They're feeling buggies full of not food, but they're putting our conditions by three or four or five on a buggy and trying to get out the doors with them. The business alert system is not a replacement for crimes in progress. The goal is for businesses to share information with other businesses such as pictures, videos or current trends and hopefully other businesses who receive the alerts can become familiar with those trends and identify those who frequently shoplift. If something happens at my store or if it happens at another retailer where there will be a Walmart or Lowe's or whoever it would be, if we can get the information down and get them stopped, we might not just get them charged just for what happened at our store, get them charged also for these other incidents as well. For more information or to sign up for business alerts, contact Paul Maynard by the number listed on your screen. In Pikeville, I'm Shelby Still for EKB News.