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Update: A couple days ago, The Dallas Morning News reported about an incident that sounds similar to some of the occurrences mentioned in our original post. In the Richardson-Garland area a woman was held up at gunpoint in her garage. The suspects had sheets wrapped around their heads. They demanded money and then fled on foot. It is unclear whether or not this incident is related to the following.

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Original post: A recent spike in gun-related crimes has caused Dallas Police Department to increase patrol in Lakewood Hills Neighborhood, according to an email exchange between neighbor Pryce Tucker and Dallas PD officer Francisco Nevarez.

An aggravated robbery, on top of a handful of past gun-related crimes, in the area have neighbors “extremely concerned,” Tucker, who is the chair of the Lakewood Hills Crime Watch, told Nevarez in an email.

The most recent occurrence was Monday evening, Sept. 23, at around 9:30 p.m. According to the police report, two tall, “lanky” black males with a shotgun approached the victim after she exited her car, which was parked in her garage in the 7100 block of La Vista. She screamed and threw her purse at the suspects, who took her purse and then ran out of her garage. A witness saw the suspects leave her garage and drive away in a dark-colored Sedan, the police report says. The witness says the suspects were wearing white t-shirts and appeared to have material on their faces. The victim was unharmed, and police are still investigating.

This incident sounds similar to an aggravated robbery that happened nearby in the 6800 block of Lorna a few weeks ago, says Lakewood Crime Watch founder and chair Nancy Wilson, but police have not confirmed or denied whether or not they believe the incidents are related.

In that incident, which occurred Sept. 6 at about 10:30 p.m., a man parked his vehicle in front of his home. As he exited his vehicle, he was approached from behind by one of the suspects, who demanded that the victim hand over his wallet. Then another suspect, armed with a handgun, approached from the front of the vehicle, according to the police report. The victim handed over his wallet and iPhone, then pulled out a “service weapon” from his console and both suspects ran away on foot, the police report says. Dallas police have not yet released a description of the suspects.

In his emails, Tucker also expressed concern over a handful of past incidents in the Lakewood Hills area, including two fatal shootings at around 11 p.m. on Sept. 5 at the San Mateo Forest Apartments near Lindsley Park. A week later on Sept. 12, at about 9:20 a.m., a woman was robbed at gunpoint while walking in the 1000 Shady Side area. The suspects reportedly stole her car.

“What is the DPD doing to deal with the wave of gun-related crimes in our area?” Tucker asked officer Nevarez.

Nevarez responded, saying:

“Our detectives are currently working the cases you and I previously discussed. I have requested Extra Patrol for your neighborhood as of this morning for the evening and night shifts. I do need to ask you for a big favor. Can you please send a newsletter to the members in your neighborhood and ask them to close their garage doors before exiting their vehicles, report any suspicious activity, and if they park their vehicles out on the street or on their driveways to make sure they do not leave anything in plain view.”

Tucker, who has been the chair for the Lakewood Hills Crime Watch for several years, told us he is relieved to see the police responding quickly and taking the incidents seriously. They’ve been good about doing so in the past as well, he says.

As for the incidents, he hopes it’s just a blip on the crime radar. “I think this is just a blip because we’ve actually had a very low crime rate in Lakewood Hills for the past year,” he says. “It’s a good, safe neighborhood over all, and we have a very active, involved neighborhood group.”

If you have information about these crimes, call Crime Stoppers at 1.877.373.8477. If a person or situation makes you uncomfortable, call 911 immediately.