The Paola Police Department has released its year-end statistics for 2018, and the total reported criminal offenses dropped from 692 in 2017 to 549 in 2018, a reduction of 20 percent.
Capt. Eric Jenkins said the department leaders were particularly pleased to see a reduction in preventable offenses, such as burglaries (down 21 percent), theft (down 33 percent) and automobile theft (down 30 percent).
“As in the past, we attribute these reductions to the citizens of Paola taking crime prevention more seriously,” Jenkins said in a news release. “Crimes such as these are typically a crime of opportunity. While we all love the small town feel of Paola, it is important to take simple quick steps to prevent crime, such as locking residences/garages and vehicles.”
(Read more: The Miami County Republic)