Burglaries Drop in Northwest Area Command

Homes, business and cars are getting a lot safer in the city’s Northwest Side.

In the past year, there has been a 17 percent reduction in commercial, auto and home burglaries. In December, burglaries were down 54 percent.

Albuquerque Police Commander Steve Warfield credits hard working officers and detectives and active neighborhood associations as the reason for the decrease. The Northwest Area command oversees policing north of Interstate 40 and west of the Rio Grande and is operating out of a temporary building near Coors and Ellison NW until a new $7 million facility is built.

"It's the people and the community buying into the idea that they have responsibility, they have ownership," Warfield said. “In the past, we were reactive to issues and problems.”

Northwest detectives have used tactics to help reduce property crime in the neighborhoods. They have been studying dates, times and locations burglaries have occurred and have conducted countless stakeouts.

Commander Warfield has also been attending neighborhood association meetings encouragining residents to report suspicious activity. The commander has also encouraged neighborhood watches and many neighborhoods in the Northwest has a special patrol made up of volunteers who look for anything out of the ordinary. Warfield has been instrumental in organizing 40 neighborhood watches.

As a result, the number of suspicious person calls have increased in the area command.

“I can live with that,” Warfield said. “That shows us that people are watching out for their neighbors.”