Theft: criminal nearly caught inside (7)
I believe the answer is:
larceny
'theft' is the definition.
('larceny' can be a synonym of 'theft')
'criminal nearly caught inside' is the wordplay.
'criminal' indicates an anagram.
'caught' becomes 'c' (cricket abbreviation).
'inside' is an insertion indicator.
'nearly' with letters rearranged gives 'lareny'.
'lareny' placed around 'c' is 'LARCENY'.
(Other definitions for larceny that I've seen before include "Criminal activity" , "Robbery" , "Theft of personal property" , "Burglary" , "Stealing - theft" .)