Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the patterns of reported cargo thefts at

non-secure parking facilities in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) with respect to stolen

value, frequency, incident category, and modi operandi.

Design/methodology/approach – This study is based on a system-theoretical approach that

emphasizes on a holistic rather than an atomistic view. The research method used in this paper is

deductive; the analysis is based on data obtained from the incident information service (IIS), a database

of transport-related crimes from the Transported Asset Protection Association (TAPA) in the EMEA

region. The results are analysed and discussed within a frame of reference based on supply chain risk

management (SCRM) and criminology theories.

Findings – We found that 97 per cent of all attacks during a stop occur at non-secure parking

locations. Cargo thefts at these locations are more of a volume crime than high-value thefts. Seasonal

variations were seen in these thefts, and the most common type was an intrusion on weekdays

during winter.

Research limitations/implications – This study is limited by the content of and the classifications

within the TAPA EMEA IIS database.

Practical implications – This paper is directly relevant to the current EU discussions regarding the

creation of a large number of secure parking facilities in the region.

Originality/value – This is one of the first papers in the field of SCRM that utilizes actual crime

statistics reported by the industry to analyse the occurrence of cargo theft by focusing on the

non-secure parking aspect in the transport chain.