Prince George's County students robbed at knifepoint while getting off school bus
Students robbed at knifepoint getting off school bus in Prince George's Co.
Parents in a Prince George’s county neighborhood are on high alert after students from nearby schools were robbed at knifepoint while getting off the school bus. FOX 5's Jacqueline Matter spoke to police about what they're doing to keep residents safe.
LANGLEY PARK, Md. - Parents in a Prince George’s County neighborhood are on high alert after students from nearby schools were robbed at knifepoint while getting off the school bus.
There’s been several incidents in Langley Park where students have been robbed while heading home from school.
The most recent incident happened just last week here at the intersection of 15th Avenue and Kanawha Street.
Parents picking up their kids from the bus stop near Bedford Station Apartments in Langley Park are now fearing for their child’s safety.
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The community, made up of mostly Spanish speaking families, calling for action and sitting down with Prince George’s County police officers to tell them this has been happening for weeks.
"We heard from them. That’s something we didn’t know because we’re not there, they’re there every day so that’s the best way to work it and know what’s going on. Now we know how to approach it," said Corporal Juan Damian with the Prince George’s County Police Department.
Police say they are stepping up patrols while kids are getting off the bus.
Investigators were also able to arrest a suspect in the most recent robbery that happened on January 10th where a juvenile held a knife up to the victim.
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"Some of the victims we heard was middle school and the suspect was from high school," said Corporal Damian.
Asked about what the suspects were robbing from the victims, Corporal Damian said, "He one we got it was just items they had with them. Nothing. Just items from school, electronics."
"The other ones that we don’t have them we just heard they were victims of a robbery but we still don’t know what was taken so we’re still investigating."
Police say they are also working with nearby schools and SRO’s to find out if they hear anything while kids are in the classroom.
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They also pointed to a larger problem with juvenile crime in the area.
"We had some carjacking’s, some other crimes," said Corporal Damian.
"It’s crime regardless of kids, adults. It’s bad either way but we’re here. We don’t want that to happen. We’re here to enforce the laws if someone’s committing a crime we’re going to be here."
Police say they do not care about legal status and you can remain anonymous when reporting an incident and can do so in both English and Spanish at 1-866-411-TIPS.