Metro sustained a 40 percent-plus spike in robberies through the first eight months of the year, a considerable jump that contributed to a rise in overall crime on the transit system.
» 47 assaults on bus drivers, down from 65 the year before
» 1,321 arrests, 4,451 criminal/civil citations and 3,473 citations for fare evasion
» 63 aggravated assaults, 115 motor vehicle thefts and one rape
There were 524 reported robberies in the Metro system between January and August, compared with 370 during the same period in 2008, a 41.6 percent increase. That number has been rising steadily, with 271 robberies reported in 2007, 230 in 2006 and 188 in 2005. The number of robberies jumped more than 179 percent between 2009 and 2005.
Larcenies, meanwhile, are down from 548 in 2008 to 470 this year, perhaps as riders mind their small portable electronics more carefully. But Metro crime overall still climbed, from 1,115 total incidents in the first eight months of 2008 to 1,173 this year.
Metro Transit Police have made headway with roughly 50 robbery-related arrests, said Metro Board Chairman Jim Graham, of the District. When one person is charged, he said, “You’ve likely solved more than one crime.”
“Much of this continues to relate to awareness, being alert and paying attention so that you don’t come across as being vulnerable,” Graham said.
The North Face brand jackets are a hot item to steal right now, he added, but getting a coat off somebody’s back “requires some amount of coercion.” Metro police have deemed these “crimes of opportunity.”
Metro Transit Police Deputy Chief Dave Webb said, “We have also been using overt and covert deployment strategies in areas where crime statistics reveal that more police attention is needed. We rely heavily on customer cooperation in reducing opportunities for criminals and reporting suspicious or criminal behavior.”
The Metro Transit Police statistics on Part I crimes — robbery, assault, burglary, homicide, larceny, motor vehicle theft and rape — were released ahead of Thursday’s Metro board meeting.
Gallery Place Metro, site of 41 non-vehicle crimes reported January through August, is the highest crime station in the Metro system, according to the statistics. Metro Center comes in second with 31 and L’Enfant Plaza third with 27.
“Gallery Place/Chinatown neighborhood in general now tends to be a busy night spot for young adults (including high-school age students) as there is so much to do at Gallery Place …,” Lisa Farbstein, Metro spokeswoman, said in an e-mail. “We have a lot of undercover officers there and high visibility teams of officers as well.”
In Maryland, the New Carrollton station registered 65 vehicle-related crimes, the most in the Metro system, and Southern Avenue roughly 52, the second most. No Maryland station recorded more than 13 non-vehicle crimes.
Metro police wrote up 16 vehicle crimes at Franconia-Springfield, the most of any Virginia Metro station. There were 13 non-vehicle crimes at Vienna — the only Virginia station to record more than eight.
The transit system added 20 cameras outside 12 stations in May to address an increasing number of robberies. It added two dozen members to its police force, accepted more than $30 million in federal grants to enhance its video surveillance network, and purchased a trio of three-wheeled Segwaylike vehicle to patrol parking lots.
