A deeper look into the crime at Courtyard Place Apartments
Posted: Jun 22, 2013 3:14 PM EDT | Updated: Nov 6, 2014 3:10 AM EDT
SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Police were called to Courtyard Place Apartments over 500 times last year. Most of those calls are what police consider nuisance calls. Police say quite a bit of crime goes on there as well, but a lot of it doesn’t get reported.
It's no secret that there’s a lot of police activity at Courtyard Place Apartments.
ABC 57 talked with one woman who says all the police presence has helped a lot.
"It’s a big difference out here. It's more safe now, we have more police officers and you don't have to worry about a lot of people hanging outside." said Courtyard Place Apartment resident Theresa Newbill-Brown.
Many who live there say they focus on the good things; pretty flowers, nice people, and over all they feel safe.
But police say it’s a different story for those who are not part of the family.
Thursday, three men used Craigslist to lure someone from out of town to the complex. When he got there in hopes of buying a scooter, he was robbed.
No one from the complex called to report the incident.
"That is what makes it so desirable for the criminals. You lure them into your comfort zone and you know all the ways to retreat and to flee with their property," said Captain Phil Trent of the South Bend Police Department.
Residents and police agree that some of the nuisance calls and more serious crimes would die down if there was an officer who lived in the complex.
Several years ago, the police department gave incentives to officers that lived in high crime areas, but now it's up to the apartment complexes to offer the incentives.