Minneapolis PD warns of robberies in Ventura Village, Midtown Phillips neighborhoods

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – Minneapolis police say thieves in two neighborhoods south of downtown have been focusing on individuals getting out and in of their automobiles.

In a warning issued on Friday, the division is warning residents within the Ventura Village and Midtown Phillips neighborhoods to take some easy precautions to keep away from being victimized.

Based on police, they’ve acquired a number of studies of armed suspects focusing on individuals sitting of their automobiles or individuals getting in or out of their automobiles parked on the road.

Investigators say, most often, the robberies have occurred in the course of the late afternoon or early night (between 4 p.m. to 9 p.m.) and sometimes the crooks are demanding the victims’ keys, wallets, telephones, and passwords to their telephones.

Police say they’ve arrange cameras in no less than one space and can conduct “proactive targeted enforcement particulars” in crime hotspots.

On the similar time, police are encouraging drivers to take some steps to keep away from being victimized. They embody:

• Preserve automobile doorways locked always. (There have been confirmed circumstances the place this has stopped the theft!)
• Scrolling and utilizing your cellphone whereas sitting in your automobile makes you a straightforward goal. Keep conscious of your environment.
• Have a multi-factor authentication for cash apps (financial institution accounts, Venmo, PayPal, CashApp) in your cellphone.
• Plan forward, notify others of your ETA.
• If you happen to suppose somebody is following you whilst you’re in your automobile, hold driving! Go to a secure place comparable to a police station or open enterprise.
• Be an excellent witness. Attempt to keep in mind license plate numbers, car and suspect description, and path they fled.
• Name 911 to report these incidents. If you happen to see one thing, say one thing to 911. Assets and personnel might be higher deployed this manner
• Get to know your neighbors. Begin or reenergize your block membership in order that data sharing is fast and correct.

That is the second alert that Minneapolis police have issued within the third precinct this month. On August 15, the division warned residents about a rise in robberies in carjackings within the Bryant, Bancroft, Regina and Northrop neighborhoods. The warning additionally got here the identical day as FOX 9 heard from nurses at Kids’s Minnesota about current crime impacting the hospital.