The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) is taking to the skies in the hopes of cracking down on carjackings.
According to police data, in 2023 there were 958 carjackings and only 173 arrests. Police hope in 2024, they’ll be able to solve significantly more of these cases using helicopters.
“It helps us to coordinate throughout the District, Maryland and Virginia area, and to kind of bring everybody’s resources to play to stop these spree offenses,” MPD Inspector Michael Pulliam said.
Police said their chopper played a crucial role over the weekend, when a rideshare driver picked up a group of teenagers near the D.C./Maryland line on South Capitol Street. Authorities said the teens assaulted the driver and then took off.
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With the help of the helicopter and increased communication with neighboring law enforcement agencies, police were able to arrest the suspects.
Those strategies were introduced over the summer as part of MPD’s Robbery Suppression Initiative.
“These carjacked vehicles are often then used very shortly in other offenses. It may be a chain of robberies. It may be shootings or other violent offenses,” Pulliam said.
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Police said since launching the Robbery Suppression Initiative on Aug. 1, 2023, they’ve tripled their time in the sky with the helicopters.
“We can minimize vehicular pursuits, which makes it safer for the districts and the officers and the actual subject within that vehicle,” Lt. Andrew Horos, of the department’s Air Support Unit, said.
While the department said the initiative has led to a downward trend in carjackings, police data shows this type of crime was still happening a lot more often in 2023 than it was in 2022. From the day the initiative was launched until the end of the year, 379 carjackings were reported. During that same time period in 2022, there were 195 carjackings.
Though there may still be plenty of work to be done, the department is hopeful their new strategy will make streets safer.
“As they make those arrests and those numbers are going down, it’s a morale boost to everyone involved,” Horos said.
