Facing a record number of robberies this year, Louisville police have set up a Web site — www.lmpdasap.com — that allows the public to peruse all robberies in the city in which store surveillance videos, still images, or suspect mug shots are available, reports the Louisville Courier-Journal. Each link contains a description of what took place and information about the suspect. Police hope residents will check the site, recognize someone and alert police — either through e-mail links on the site, by phone, or in person.
There have been 371 business robberies in Louisville this year, a 17-year high, said detective Larry Duncan. Last year, there were 244 business robberies. The Web site — they’re calling it the Armed Suspect Apprehension Program, or ASAP — was developed by detectives in the robbery squad and paid for with money in the squad’s budget. It will be updated several times a week. It’s the first time such information has been made available to the public in one location, says Police Chief Robert White. He has not found another department in the country that has a Web site like it. Police believe the spike in robberies is due in part to several serial robbers who have hit multiple businesses this year. Detectives have made arrests in about half of this year’s robberies.
Link: http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051202/NEWS01/512020391