Las Vegas police made 1,229 arrests and confiscated 64 firearms in the Strip area during its three-month operation to stop the rise in crime levels.
Police Made “Tremendous Progress”
More than 1,200 people were arrested on the Las Vegas Strip, as part of the Metropolitan Police Department’s three-month operation to fight crime in the area. The Convention Center Area Command led Operation Persistent Pressure every Friday and Saturday night from September 18 to December 20, which led to 1,229 arrests, 55% of which involved tourists or people from other states.
A one-month plan dubbed Operation Top Gun previously resulted in the confiscation of 64 firearms.
Metro Captain Dori Koren said last Tuesday that the rise in crime and violence on the Strip “was resolved to some extent,” as police made “tremendous progress” in dealing with crimes on the tourist corridor. According to Koren, arrests included disorderly conducts, robberies, assaults, batteries, and illegal shootings with 36% people charged for gross misdemeanors or felonies.
Violence Began to Rise Significantly in September
In a statement issued Friday, Koren declared that violent crime in the Strip area started rising in September, with violent altercations including shootings and aggravated assaults.
On September 11, Encore Las Vegas filed a trespassing lawsuit against 20 people involved in a fight at the hotel on Labor Day, a week earlier. The lawsuit states that the incident caused physical damages and reputational harm. More than five shootings were reported for September 2020 alone.
Las Vegas police reported there had been a decrease in the number of sexual assaults and robberies on the Strip from October to December, while the number of shootings dropped by 54% over the same period.
October saw its overall violent crime rate increase by 8% year on year near the Strip. This rate decreased over the next two months but remained 1.8% higher on December 20 than last year that month.
Metro Captain Mentions Team Effort
“This initiative was based on a collaborative effort of proactive policing and crime prevention that involved nearly every component of the LVMPD,” Koren declared. She mentioned the crucial role of LVMPD’s partners in Operation Persistent Pressure, which includes “casino and hotel security, the Nevada Highway Patrol, and the Clark County School District Police Department“.
Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo had shared that police officers in uniform had been spread out across the area, while the number of undercover officers had been increased with the help of the Department of Homeland Security to maintain constant vigilance.
Police will keep up with their progress through their current area command resources. “We are also constantly evaluating what other new efforts need to be made to continue improving the safety and quality of life on the Strip,” Koren assured.