The Minneapolis Police Department is working on a new plan to address a spike in robberies. Over the weekend, 46 violent crimes were reported in the city and 70% of those were robberies. 

On Monday, three juveniles were arrested after an armed robbery and two more were arrested on Wednesday. Four of those suspects have since been charged.

The spike in armed robberies triggered a new Robbery Pattern Response Protocol. This means when multiple armed robberies occur in a short period of time, police officers including Chief Brian O’Hara himself will now divert their focus from non-emergency calls and instead flood the scene of the reported robbery and remain highly visible until the incident is over. 

“Any officers writing reports, typing investigations or on breaks, will be pulled immediately and be deployed to the area of concern,” O’Hara explained. 

O’Hara says many armed robberies are committed by juveniles who are well known to police. He says it’s “frustrating” not having enough to charge some of these juveniles or even make an arrest.

“This is becoming learned behavior. We’re providing negative enforcement when we engage in catch and release, and we’re almost encouraging them to continue this. That is definitely something concerning,” said O’Hara. 

He adds they are working with the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office to build the cases that are required to charge suspects. 

According to the Minneapolis Public Crime Dashboard, robberies are up 41% from this time last year but down from 2021 and 2022.

Police are urging people to be aware of their surroundings and try to not be in a position where they’re boxed in or see something suspicious.