LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – Las Vegas Metropolitan Police are ramping up Strip patrols for Memorial Day weekend with an “all hands on deck” staffing approach, dispatching as many officers as possible throughout Las Vegas Boulevard for added visibility and increased presence.
The booking station and numerous officers can be seen outside Planet Hollywood in the middle of the Strip in a strategy called “claiming the block.”
“When our cops are out on foot patrol, if they’re handling a call on the Boulevard, we like to leave our cars up next to the sidewalk to have the ‘deterrence’ effect that a cop is nearby,” said Captain Stephen Connell with Convention Center Area Command. “You know we’re we’re close by, and it just tends to have a calming effect on that area around it,” he said. Tourists also like to speak with officers, ask questions and engage in conversations.
FOX5 has spoken to Captain Stephen Connell about his ongoing strategy to boost police visibility across the Strip, all to tackle a crucial goal throughout the past two years: stamp out crime and make the Strip feel safer as well as be safer.
Since late 2022, when Connell was appointed by Sheriff Kevin McMahill to oversee Strip enforcement, Connell said the new leader of Metro Police made Strip safety a priority.
“In 2023, when the new Sheriff came in, he prioritized safety on the tourist corridors. We’re almost doing better now than we were last year. It’s a combination of cooperation with the resorts, increase in foot patrols, the operations that we’re running out of Convention Center [Area Command], so we look to just keep getting better and keep having those declines going forward,” Connell said.
Violent and nonviolent crimes continue to see double-digit decreases.
Year-to-Date 2023 to 2024 statistics:
-67% Homicides
-45% Robberies
-40% Aggravated Assaults
-36% Burglaries
-54% Motor Vehicle Thefts
-14% Thefts
Throughout Memorial Day weekend, two-to-three-person teams have been tasked to maintain an “omnipresence” on various pedestrian bridges. Connell said his team recently arrested around 20 pickpocketers, all from groups from Central America and Eastern Europe, who targeted tourists on the stairways.
“It was in conjunction with some of our real time cameras centers, and then we obviously have good deployments with bike units for people on foot. [Officers] in cars were able to swoop in and capture. Ever since we caught them last month, we haven’t had any of that type of activity since,” Connell said.
Some have now been deported, Connell said. Now that violent crime has significantly decreased, Connell tells FOX5 that his team can zero in on issues surrounding property crimes.
Connell said the open communication between police, resorts and their individual security and surveillance teams is crucial to maintaining safety throughout the Strip, looking out for crime or suspects, and also quickly respond to any incidents.
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