Over the past few months, gas station crimes have been increasing in cities across Indiana. For example, a person got wounded in a shoot-out in Anderson on July 11, according to WTHR 13. Oftentimes, criminals commit crimes at gas stations because of underlying problems in their lives.
Student Resource Officer David Reed said, “It’s convenient and a lot of times the reason people are doing these crimes is to feed some kind of other problem they have, whether it’s a drug habit or a gambling problem or something along that nature. There’s a lot of places that are quick targets but they figure they’ve always got money flowing through, because think about all the people who stop and get gas.”
According to CSP Daily News, which covered the 2020 FBI crime statistics, gas stations were the seventh most common area for crime, while convenience stores were number four. Out of 675,715 violent crimes that year, 11,795 were in gas stations.
I asked Officer Reed what gas stations could do to not get robbed. “We’ve told some gas stations to light the area up better. The more lighting and cameras you have, and if people come in and see those lights and cameras, it’ll detour the crime. And we encourage officers to get to know the people working in the stores, and communicate with them on ways to prevent crime. ”
Unfortunately, due to the economy, Officer Reed speculates that gas station robberies will either stabilize or simply continue to rise.
Some cities in Indiana are resorting to drastic measures in order to curb gas station crime. In August, Hammond, Indiana’s council passed an ordinance that means gas stations will have to close from midnight to 5 a.m. According to WTHR 13, the ordinance, which was supported by Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. passed with a seven to two vote. The ordinance was introduced by McDermott Jr. after a 33-year-old man died at a gas station, and McDermott Jr. hopes to curb gas station crimes with the ordinance. If you are ever the victim of a gas station crime or any crime, call 911 immediately.
