Borderstan Robberies Down, But Rash of Incidents in Past Week
11th and U Streets NW. (Cody Telep)
From Cody Telep. Follow him on Twitter @codywt, email him at [email protected].
The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) distributed flyers entitled “Robbery Alert” to cars parked in the U Street area Tuesday afternoon, and repeated the distribution to cars and pedestrians passing through the intersection of 12th Street, NW and W Street, NW on Thursday morning. The flyers provide a series of safety tips to help residents and visitors avoid becoming robbery victims.
Robberies in Borderstan were up in January over 2011 numbers (Borderstan Sees Jump in Armed Robberies in January). February robberies, however, are down so far compared to 2011 numbers. There were only seven robberies in Borderstan from February 1 through the afternoon of February 16, compared to 17 in the same time period in 2011. In 2010, just four robberies were reported in the first 16 days of February, a number likely affected by the two major snowstorms that struck D.C. in early February.
Despite the lower numbers compared to 2011 and January 2012, six of the seven robberies occurred just this week.
Two robberies took place the evening of February 12, one in the 1300 block of Corcoran Street, NW and another near Logan Circle in the 1500 block of Kingman Place, NW. On the evening of February 13, a victim was robbed in the 1100 block of R Street, NW. During the early morning hours of Valentine’s Day a gun robbery occurred at a bus stop in the 1900 block of 11th Street, NW.
A victim was robbed at gunpoint on February 15 at 8:30 a.m. on the 2100 block of 12th Place ,NW. Finally, a gun robbery occurred in the early morning of February 16 at the intersection of Connecticut Avenue, NW and Q Street, NW.
Fortunately, two arrests have been made in the 11th Street NW case; the pair are also suspected in two other robberies outside of Borderstan that took place early Tuesday morning (see coverage from The Washington Post).
The text of the MPD flyer is below:
- Attacks usually come from behind. Be aware of distances between you and someone who may be coming up behind you.
- Try to avoid walking alone, cutting through alley ways or areas that are dark or less traveled.
- Watch alleys and dark spaces between buildings. This is where the robber gets the jump on you.
- Innocuous questions like “Do you have the time, May I borrow you cell to call someone, Do you have a light?” may be indicators. Follow your instinct. If it doesn’t feel right, step into a store or business. Most of the time this will deter the robbers.
- If you need to use your cell phone or text, stop somewhere public. The robber does not want witnesses.
- Do not take money out of an ATM late at night. Get your money before you head out for the evening.
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