Overall instances of crime in Montgomery County continued their downward trend through the third quarter of 2009, police said.
Crime dropped 4.1 percent between June and September over the same period last year. Crime is down 4.7 percent from January through September over the same nine months in 2008.
Recommended Stories
The third-quarter reduction was led by a 20 percent drop in car thefts, police said. Robberies dropped by 19 percent, from 304 in 2008 to 245 in 2009.
However, aggravated assaults — which often include the use of a weapon — increased by nearly 15 percent during third quarter, going from 240 in 2008 to 275 in 2009. That continues a trend started earlier this year, police said, and makes for a total of a 4.9 percent jump in aggravated assaults for the first nine months of 2009.
“With specific targeted deployment of our Police Community Action Team officers, we hope to reverse this trend” of assaults, Montgomery County Police Chief Thomas Manger said.
– Freeman Klopott
