KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 19 — The crime index in populous Dang Wangi, which includes tourist hotspots like Bukit Bintang, KLCC and Central Market, came down by 13 per cent last year, thanks to new initiatives by the district’s police headquarters, Asst Comm Zainol Samah said.
ACP Zainol, who is district police chief, added that “street crime” (like robberies and snatch thefts), which is said to be the main contributor to the crime index, also saw a 37.7 per cent decline in 2015, while violent crimes saw a decrease of 20.1 per cent.
He said Dang Wangi police have also identified three “hotspots” for street crimes, namely Bukit Bintang, Pasar Seni and Jalan Ampang, and have increased police presence there, resulting in fewer incidents involving tourists.
While almost all crime in the area saw a decrease, robberies around KLCC and along Jalan Ampang, however, saw an 11.54 per cent increase with an additional three cases reported in 2015 compared to 2014, he said.
Zainol attributed the overall drop in index crime to the increased police presence with the use of Mobile Patrol Vehicles (MPV), Motorcycle Patrol Units (URB), mobile police stations and Ops Payung, which involves stationing police canopies at select locations around Kuala Lumpur.
“You show the presence of police as a means of prevention. Every hour there will be two URB units patrolling.
“We also have the canopies as an initiative to prevent crime; with police there we can anticipate the criminals will be scared. It’s placed in front of hotels and it not only shows police presence but they also do patrols and citizens can ask for assistance,” he explained.
He added that plainclothes police officers were also deployed to crowded areas like KLCC and Jalan Ampang in order to “gather intelligence and monitor suspicious people.”
