APD Suggestions for Crime Prevention

I feel many times folks let the little things go or petty crime they feel Police can't solve goes unreported. So then things escalate to where it is a real problem and folks get very frustrated. I hear many times citizens saying they don't want to bother the police or police have more important things to do. Nonsense, Please do bother us, never hesitate to call 9-1-1 or 3-1-1 to report an incident. We are dispatched according to a priority system. If a Officer is available he/she will be sent; if not when one becomes available they will be sent out. Yes we have limited resources and as such we have a "Crime Analyst". His job is to track crime by frequency and types. This information is used to deploy, patrol officers, special units, develop plans to curve the crime. We look for "Hot Spots". The old saying the squeaky wheel gets the grease. The neighborhood starts reporting crime and demanding action, then we know you have a problem and focus our attention on it.

So if you have an aggressive solicitor, or one who's story does not seem right, or one who try's your door handle before knocking.....Call 9-1-1. Let us check them out. If they aren't breaking the law, fine, it at least lets them know we know they are in the area. It also lets them know folks care enough to ask Police to check things out in their neighborhood. Sometimes we get lucky they have warrants and they get picked up. If it is suspicious to you, then it is worth calling in. This also lets the patrol officer assigned to your area know what kind of things to look for and he/she patrols with a better purpose.

As for yourselves be aware of your surroundings. Don't leave property in plain view in either your vehicles or your yards. These become tempting crimes of opportunity. Use motion sensor lighting. Perhaps put radios or TVs on timers during the day when your gone to work. Say one timer in a front room for a couple of hours, then a second in another room for a later time. Crooks look around and try to listen to see if someone is home. Close blinds so they can't look in. The best thing of all is neighbors looking out for neighbors.

Hope this helps some.

SPO Ricardo A. Vargas #4579
Central West District Representatives
Austin Police Department
974-5801