STERLING, Va. -- Loudoun County residents are responding to a spike in thefts from vehicles and other crimes in 2008 with a small army of new neighborhood watch groups.
Residents and officials have formed 15 new neighborhood watch groups in Sterling Park. The groups now cover more than 98 percent of residential areas in Sterling. Overall, the county now has 50 neighborhood watches.
The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office investigated more than 700 larcenies from vehicles in 2008, which was about a 30 percent increase.
In September, the sheriff's office responded to two shootings and a stabbing in Sterling in less than a week.
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Sterling Supervisor Eugene Delgaudio plans to bring in federal, state and local officials to update residents on crime-fighting efforts in a meeting Jan. 15 at Park View High School.
Copyright AP - Associated Press
