So, I go to a tent and successfully steal some stuff in sneak mode, but then when I get out of sneak mode some nearest npc comes from like 20 meters away and tells me to strip for inspection! The guy was nowhere near me and couldn't have seen me do it!

Anyway, I think stealing is working weird and npcs should run after me only if they catch me red handed in the red zone and certainly not *after* I stole something but was still near the crime zone.