A Midtown couple woke up to the sound of someone burglarizing their home. It's just one incident that's happened recently in the Valentine area that has neighbors wanting increased police patrols.
Drew Gilmore is the co-chair of the Valentine Neighborhood Association. He says neighbors have recently reported several break-ins in the neighborhood. The most recent happened on Sunday morning when the couple was at home.
"That's actually classified as a violent crime." said Gilmore.
Gilmore says they recently lost their community outreach officer. He believes the reduction in police patrols has resulted in an increase in crime.
"The police have had some cutbacks and we don't have as many people patrolling our neighborhoods as much as some of the other neighborhoods in the city," said Gilmore.
A problem Kansas City Police recognize and plan to address.
"We're definitely upping our patrols, and we're reminding the residents in that area to make sure their windows are locked, make sure the sliding glass windows are locked. These individuals are walking in through broken windows and doors." said Kari Thompson with the Kansas City Police Department.
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Lisa Benson can be reached at lisa.benson@kshb.com.
