*From: *Amara Rockar <[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>>
*Date: *August 2, 2011 10:05:45 AM EDT
*Subject: **Re: [UCNeighbors] robbery at gunpoint 10:30ish aug1,
2011*
*
*
According to SW Detective Joseph Murray, the victim gave up his
wallet
but decided the gun wasn't real and demanded the wallet back and
then
was shot.
Murray's response to a recent post on West Philly Local and comments
has a lot of good information in it and I thought I'd share:
TheFuzz9143 Says:
July 31st, 2011 at 11:32 pm
<http://www.westphillylocal.com/2011/07/31/another-rash-of-neighborhood-robberies-keep-police-busy/#comment-8700
>
AFB, I respect your decision to not give up your things during a
robbery. I don’t agree with it, but to each his own. You cited a
robbery from earlier this month in which a store clerk was shot in
the
face even though he gave up the money that was demanded of him. If
we
were going tit-for-tat I could remind you of Mustafa Shaker who was
killed in his store at Front and Girard in late May. Shaker had
enough
of being a victim and started throwing cans at the robbers. One of
the
guys turned and shot Shaker in the face with a shotgun as he fled
the
store. Could his death have been prevented by simply giving them
what
they wanted? Who knows. All I know is I will never tell a 20 year
old
Penn student to take a guess on whether a gun is real or not so he
can
keep his iPhone.
In 2009, the FBI states police departments around the country
handled
more than 400,000 robberies. Within those numbers we can find
stories
of heroes and stories of tragic, senseless loss. I recommend giving
your phone up when approached by someone with a gun. In West and
Southwest Philly, we have a damn good track record of catching
robbers. In the past few months you may have read some of the
robberies I’ve posted on Twitter. You see that the 18th district
plainclothes cops have caught a lot of these kids minutes after the
crime. Trust me, that isn’t happening throughout the city. With
UPenn,
University City detail, Allied Barton security, 18th district, 16th
district, Drexel PD etc., you have a lot of people protecting you
out
there. At Southwest Detectives we are doing our best to catch the
ones
that get away. We don’t forget the ones from months or even years
ago.
Everything usually comes full circle out here…things have a way of
solving themselves.
As detectives we are reactive more often than proactive when it
comes
to dealing with crime. I think we could do a lot better in getting
tips out or alerting the public to crime patterns. That being
said, a
lot of the tips I would give may seem like common sense to most.
Dont walk with your iPod on full blast at night. If you must walk
late
night try to use the more well-lit blocks. (Riding my bike to and
from
work has really shown me just how dark these streets get. Next time
you’re riding down Pine St at night just try to make out people
walking down the sidewalks. Impossible.) If you must walk late at
night, just be aware at all times. I’m not saying be paranoid,
just
use common sense when picking and choosing routes. Crossing streets
instead of walking through groups of kids. If something doesn’t
feel
right..it probably isn’t. Trust your instincts.
Missy: I happen to think that a decrease in drug activity has led to
more robberies from older teens and guys in their early 20′s. In
West/SW we just don’t see the volume of drug sales that we did
before.
How else can some criminals make money if the drug game isn’t
what it
used to be? As far as the younger kids, the group/gang mentality
seems
to be the fad. The kids in their early teens seem to favor the shock
and awe approach meaning they bum rush and attack then take whatever
they can get their hands on. It should be noted that when separated
from the group in the police station they tend to weep
uncontrollably.
Naomi: As far as requesting escorts, it depends on where you live.
215-898-WALK is the number to request a security guard walk-along on
and near PENN’s campus. From Upenn’s safety website:
Available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, between 30th to 43rd
Streets and Market Street to Baltimore Avenue.
Escorts are also available from 10:00am until 3:00am between 30th &
50th and Spring Garden Street to Woodland Avenue via the
University’s
partnership with the University District Ambassador Program.
And Missy you mentioned the criminal element moving closer to the
neighborhood. This is a major city. There are nice neighborhoods and
not so nice neighborhoods. As a fact of life, the haves and have-
nots
are going to cross paths somewhere in the middle. Pick a nice
neighborhood and I can give you examples of robbers/burglars
slipping
in from an adjacent area to commit crime. Just use common sense and
trust your instincts and more often than not it will be enough to
keep
you safe.
If anyone has any questions or problems in West or Southwest
division
feel free to respond here or email me at [email protected]
<mailto:[email protected]> or call me at my office #215-476-1131.
