Law enforcement officers see spike in crime rates

WEBSTER COUNTY,Miss. (WCBI)- Violence and crime numbers are on a steady climb according to law enforcement officers.

Your valuables could be next on the list.

When the pandemic first began, law enforcement tells me that crime declined at a drastic rate.

Families stayed inside their homes leaving thieves on the outside.

With schools back in session and parents at their jobs it’s opens the door for theft.

Break-in’s are starting to pick up and your vehicle could be a target.

” Just recently, we’ve have a few burglaries,” said Webster County Sheriff David Gore.

Gore says his office has received a string of reports this past week.

” I’m not going to say a-lot, just a slight up-tick here recently and we are doing a little bit more investigation on those than we’ve been doing over the summertime,” said Gore.

And a higher volume of people are being busted for drugs.

” We had an over abundance of methamphetamine. We made a-lot of methamphetamine arrests and we’ve worked on it at all levels with the interstate agencies, highway patrol, game and fish they’ve all helped us,” said Gore.

Winston County Sheriff Jason Pugh says drug arrests are a common trend here too.

” We started seeing problems with DUI’s and some drug abuse and some problems in motels. People were able to go out and rent motel rooms that normally wouldn’t and have parties, so we did start to see some problems there with that,” said Pugh.

Pugh says this is only the beginning, departments are expecting numbers to boost.

” School is starting back, people are going back to work, the economy is starving, some of those checks have quit coming in. You’re starting to see and influx in your burglaries and robberies. We’ve had several trailers stolen here in the county,” said Pugh.

They’re urging folks to keep their valuables and vehicles locked.

” There’s a-lot of people hurting this year and people are going to do things they wouldn’t normally do because they do hurt,” said Pugh.

” Some of it is opportunistic, when they run up on something that is there and can be taken and it’s where it can be seen from the road, you’re running a risk,” said Gore.

Officers are concerned how numbers will look during a global pandemic in the winter months.

He says reports of theft may skyrocket during the holiday season.