Community Policing

To the Business Owners of Amherst,

The Amherst Police Department wants to provide all of you with some helpful information to assist us in preventing crime. National statistics prove that the ability to catch a criminal after a crime has been committed or for an officer to be in the area as a crime is being committed are low. The greatest ability to prevent crime is to create an environment where the ability to commit a crime is drastically reduced. The police department would like to suggest some ideas to help you spot people or conditions that are suspicious.

As business owners everyday you see people go about their business and shop in your stores. They all exhibit certain characteristics. These people could be described as “THE PROFILE OF THE NORMAL CUSTOMER”. The customer drives, rides, or walks to your business and then comes into your store to engage in business with you. When they are done with their business they either go into another store or leave. Maybe they meet up with a friend in the lot and talk. While in the lot they are talking and certainly not watching customers going to and from your store.

Legitimate customers do not hang around a business. If you observe a lone subject or a group of subjects standing around and not engaging in the usual customer profile these people are suspicious. If someone or a group of people draw attention to themselves it is because you realize these people are not acting in the normal way all of your other customers are.

When you notice this, it is time to call the police department and report a suspicious person or persons. Remember to stay on the line with the police dispatcher and tell the dispatcher if the subject(s) move. This way the dispatcher will be able to direct the officer in the patrol car to the subject(s).

Please do not hesitate to call the police department when your instincts tell you someone or something is out of the “THE PROFILE OF THE NORMAL CUSTOMER”.

Remember, no police force has enough manpower to be in every area of the city all of the time to prevent crime. The citizens in the city are our eyes. You know your business and customers better than anybody because you are there day after day. You know when something is suspicious or not right and that is when we would like you to call the department.

If you call 988-2625 you will be connected directly with an Amherst Police Department dispatcher.

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