APD posting crime bulletins online

From the Apopka Police Department Public Information Office

In a continuing effort to engage the Apopka community and reduce the incidence of crime within the City, the Apopka Police Department (APD) has begun to post crime bulletins on its website. The bulletins will be used to inform residents about recent crimes and criminal activity in and around the City of Apopka, and solicit assistance from the community to help solve these crimes.

“Community engagement in policing is a tried and true method of identifying those who continue to pillage our community and ensure they are brought to justice for their criminal actions,” commented Police Chief Mike McKinley. Apopka’s crime analyst currently produces bulletins for law enforcement partners such as area local law enforcement agencies and Crimeline. Apopka Police want to expand the dissemination of this information to the local community and have the residents be extra ‘eyes and ears.’

“Some of the bulletins may be of significance, such as those for felony crimes; and some may be for more petty criminal activity, such as retail thefts, but all are important for us to solve,” according to Deputy Chief Randy Fernandez. “We can’t be successful without our community partners, and we want everyone to be involved in making Apopka a safer and more secure place to live.”

Posting wanted bulletins of suspects or bulletins of suspected offenders to be identified is nothing new. The FBI has been publishing its most wanted list for decades; and the internet is replete with crime bulletins from various policing agencies around the country. The intent of this program is to identify the individuals in the crime in order to try to clear each case and bring the offender(s) to justice. This is only one of many ways in which Apopka Police Officers reduce crime in Apopka.

Although some of these bulletins may seem trivial, the fact is that the individual(s) in these bulletins have perpetuated crime in our community and have victimized local businesses and residents. The only way to stop this activity is to identify these individuals and hold them responsible. If we do not, then they will continue their activities and continue to harm our community.

“A shoplifter stealing a case of beer or a pack of smokes might not be committing the crime of the century,” according to Chief McKinley, “but such transgressions across the businesses in the City of Apopka add up to thousands of dollars and affect those individuals trying to make a living in our community.” Every year hundreds of thousands of stores in the U.S. succumb to approximately $32 billion dollars in losses due to theft.

Apopka Police will continue to post these bulletins in order to try to solve crime in Apopka. It is APD’s mission to reduce crime and improve the quality of life in this community, and our local partnerships will ensure this mission is met. Some of the bulletins will be regarding more serious crimes than others, but all crime is important to the victim. Anyone having information that leads to a felony arrest may be eligible for a reward and all callers can remain anonymous. Crimeline assists Central Florida law enforcement agencies by gathering information from the community to help solve crimes.

The Apopka Police Department supports the Crimeline program to aid in investigations and to foster safe and anonymous tips that lead to criminal arrests. You can help with these local cases - if you have relevant information, please call (800) 423-TIPS, go to www.crimeline.org, or e-mail APDCID@Apopka.net. Apopka bulletins can be found at the APD website and then click on Crimeline.