Wednesday, July 16, 2003
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Wednesday, July 16, 2003 |
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F'ville: Pavilion crime not excessive By JOHN MUNFORD
Large-scale retail developments like the Fayette Pavilion bring convenience to shoppers, yet they are also a temptation for criminals. According to crime statistics provided by the Fayetteville Police Department, almost half of the calls it responds to at the Pavilion are for theft, little surprise since the 40 different shops make the Pavilion the largest contiguous retail center in Fayette County. The statistics also show that the Pavilion is not overwhelming police resources. Officers responded to a call at the Pavilion an average of 1.45 times a day during a six month period from September to March, compared with 5.75 calls per day to the rest of the city. Those figures include crime reports and additional calls for service, said Maj. Steve Ledbetter of the Fayetteville Police Department. Theft accounted for 144 of 307 calls Fayetteville police responded to at the Pavilion. Police were often summoned to the Fayetteville Wal-Mart: over a third of the time according to statistics compared to other locations at the Pavilion. Although Peachtree City doesn't have any retail developments with the sheer size of the Pavilion, it does have large-scale retail at The Avenue at Peachtree City and a new Wal-Mart Superstore and Home Depot. Those three locations averaged a combined 1.32 calls per day compared with a daily average of 36.5 calls for the entire city in the first seven months of this year. Alarm calls at The Avenue accounted for one-fourth of the calls for all three locations, police records indicate. The statistics for Fayetteville and Peachtree City include not only general crime reports but calls for assistance such as unlocking vehicles and other reports like lost or mislaid property. Of the Pavilion's 40 stores, Wal-Mart accounted for over one-third of the calls reported; police were summoned there 114 times. Only 29 calls were reported at the Tinseltown movie theater, which came in second place ... and 26 calls in Target, which came in third. Home Depot was the only other store with more than 20 calls over the six month period, with 21. In Peachtree City, The Avenue accounted for 134 calls, boosted by the 62 alarm calls but just seven reports of theft or shoplifting. The new Wal-Mart accounted for 72 calls, including 12 for theft or shoplifting and another 30 for assisting motorists by unlocking a vehicle. The Peachtree City Home Depot only had 26 calls, with two theft or shoplifting calls, eight alarm calls and nine calls to unlock a vehicle. Wal-Mart, Tinseltown and other stores at the Pavilion use off-duty police officers during certain times for extra security. When Wal-Mart summons Fayetteville police for a shoplifting case, chances are they already have the suspect or suspects in custody because of their security personnel, said Maj. Ledbetter . "Those are the easy ones," Ledbetter said with a smile. Other than theft, the next-highest reported crime at the Pavilion was juvenile offenses, with 36 reported, according to police statistics. There were also eight motor vehicle thefts reported, although that compares to the average car theft rate for the rest of the city, Ledbetter said. The department uses special software to track when and where crimes occur in the city, Ledbetter noted. For example, the day of the week the Pavilion averaged the most calls was on Saturday, but Fridays and Mondays were nearly as busy, according to the statistics. The information's use is limited however, Ledbetter added. "It's impossible to predict where and when the next crime will occur," Ledbetter said.
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