Patrick Mangold was honored Nov. 24 as the 15th Police District Advisory Council’s Officer of the Month for October for making arrests in several gunpoint robberies.
On Oct. 17, Mangold saw a car at Harbison Avenue and Comly that matched the description of a vehicle used in the robberies, said Sgt. Joseph Mortimer. Mangold stopped the car, and after some investigation, arrested its three occupants in connection to the robberies. A handgun and a pellet gun were found in the car, the sergeant said.
“It’s the police officer out there on routine patrol who sees that something’s not right that works all the time,” Mortimer said.
The sergeant told PDAC members that assaults with guns are down 12 percent in the district when compared to the same time last year. Residential burglaries are down 8 percent, and thefts from autos have decreased 16 percent. Shooting incidents are down 17 percent, he added.
As crimes have gone down, arrests have gone down, too, he said.
Treasurer Pete Specos said he has lined up a sponsor who will donate $2,500 so the PDAC can run a gun buyback program. Details and a date are yet to be worked out. The money is used to buy gift certificates. A $50 gift certificate will be given to anyone who turns in a gun, with no questions asked.
The 15th PDAC will next meet at 7 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 29, at the Mayfair Community Center on St. Vincent Street. The PDAC’s sessions routinely are on the last Monday of a month. ••
