GEORGETOWN, Del. - The Georgetown Police Department reports that crime has increased with the town's growing population, particularly car break-ins, and is urging residents to continue providing information about incidents in the community.
Lt. and Deputy Chief Joel Díaz, who has been with the department for over 20 years, says he has noticed more people reporting crimes and hopes this trend will continue as Georgetown expands.
"We have a really good group of folks here that do their job, but one thing I always reiterate to the community is we can't do our job without the community," Lt. Díaz said. "That collaboration is extremely important when we talk about solving crimes. The ability for the police department to solve crimes is only as good as the information that we can obtain. That is extremely important when we work with our community to get the pictures or video surveillance or descriptions of individuals pertaining to these crimes."
Police emphasize that language should not be a barrier, noting that several staff members, including Lt. Díaz, speak Spanish. Patrolman Uriel Romero, who joined the department six months ago, is one of four Spanish-speaking personnel.
"We have the resources here. We can translate for that. I know some might say that I don't think they're gonna understand me, but we can. We have four people here who speak Spanish. Hopefully, we can get more, but yes, we're here. We can help," Romero said.
Police also use technology to communicate in other languages if needed.
"I know it's a lot easier for them to communicate with us if they see us. They're more open to tell us what's going on because some of them are scared to report stuff because they don't think anybody will listen to them, but we're here. We're here to listen," Romero added.
Officers are encouraging residents to report all incidents, no matter how minor.
"So the car was opened up, but nothing was taken. But at the same time, if you wait until later, maybe they victimize somebody else, so it's really important. They may have left behind a clue that we can utilize to help solve the crime, and a lot of these crimes do occur by the same people. If it matches the same M.O. [modus operandi], it's probably the same person, so then we can stop a chain of crimes happening with just that information," Lt. Matthew Barlow said.
The Georgetown Police Department currently has 19 of 25 authorized positions filled and is working to hire additional staff. Authorities hope to send new recruits to the police academy in October to strengthen the team.
Police remind the community that anyone who is a victim of a crime or notices suspicious activity can report it by visiting the station, calling them, or sending a message through Facebook. Reports can be made anonymously.
"Keep working with us. We are a team. This is our community, and we'll keep moving forward," Lt. Díaz said.