LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department has released the most recent crime statistics from across the Las Vegas valley and the numbers show the area of the Las Vegas Strip known as Convention Center Area Command has seen a considerable decline in property crimes.
LVC Exotic Rentals is in that area, located on the north end of the Las Vegas Strip. Paul Garcia, manager of the car rental business, says he has seen his fair share of questionable activity but feels it’s a safe place to be.
“There is a big police presence with a police station over there and another one at the Convention Center,” said Garcia. “There’s usually a lot of foot traffic coming through here and you see a lot of patrolling so I’m sure it’s intimidating to a lot of people.”
According to LVMPD statistics, robberies in area have decreased by 23 percent, and burglaries have decreased by 28 percent. Vehicle thefts in the area are down by nearly 21 percent, statistics show.
“We used to park our vehicle out front, we used to notice some vandalism,” said Garcia. “But now over the years it has gotten a lot better.”
The head of security for The Gold Key Shops, the shopping center inhabited by LVC Exotic Rentals and other businesses, says the main issue he sees is people experiencing homelessness. Ollie Jones, head of security at the shopping center, says he patrols the facility in his golf cart, and that the homeless individuals he encounters are rarely violent.
“Our job is to keep the homeless and everybody off the property that doesn’t belong so if we keep them moving then that cuts down on a lot of the traffic,” said Jones.
LVMPD statistics indicate that property crime arrests across the Las Vegas valley have increased by 15 percent.
