Arlington police work smart against robbers

Building a better net to catch robbery suspects will be more efficient, especially when a part of that net includes high visibility.

In response to the increased number of robberies in Arlington, its Police Department has created a robbery task force, Operation Safety Net.

The operation started Monday with an undetermined end date.

“This task force will seek to identify and respond to robbery patterns by using effective crime analysis to effectively target known offenders and gang members for effective enforcement,” Police Chief Will Johnson said in a news statement.

High visibility will help the task force curtail robbers.

The task force will increase traffic stops and patrols in areas with more robberies and publish videos and photos of local robbery suspects for residents to help identify.

Thirty-one of the city’s 40 robberies in January involved firearms, an increase from the same period last year, which had 38 robberies, 15 involving firearms.

The task force will work in collaboration with regional and federal law enforcement agencies to “identify and respond to robbery patterns,” Johnson said.

It all sounds like a smarter approach to a growing problem.

This story was originally published March 23, 2016 at 6:06 PM with the headline "Arlington police work smart against robbers."