Graffiti is bad for business. It not only damages the appearance of a property, but it can also create the appearance of a dangerous place which could scare away customers.
In this Arrest of the Month video, we observed a group of graffiti taggers behind a California shopping center. Their artwork was truly arresting.
Just after 5 o’clock in the morning, two people with bicycles were seen behind a California shopping center. They parked their bikes as a third person walked up to join them. With a flashlight in one hand and spray paint in the other, one of the individuals walked up to the wall of the retail center and began to spray paint graffiti on it. The other two suspects stood by and watched.
Shortly after, a white vehicle pulled up and parked. A person, clad in dark clothing, exited the passenger side of the car carrying a can of spray paint. He then approached the wall and began to paint graffiti. The driver of the vehicle also got out of the car to mark up the wall.
While all of this activity was taking place, a trained ECAM operator was watching and called police. Although a couple of the graffiti taggers had left the area when officers arrived, the three remaining suspects were directed to sit on the curb. Two of the vandals were placed in handcuffs and arrested.
Keep Your Retail Center Clean and Safe from Vandals
Graffiti is not a harmless crime. It can hurt the property value of a business and drive away customers. Not to mention, the business that gets “tagged” must pay to have the markings removed and repair any other physical damage.
Because most graffiti vandals strike at night, having the property monitored in real time when no one is there can be a quite successful deterrent. With live video monitoring, trained security operators monitor live, analytics-based cameras to watch for suspicious activity. If they see something, they can quickly assess the situation and act.
In this video, our monitoring operator contacted local police as soon as the vandals began to tag the building. This facilitated prompt arrival by responding officers who got to the property while most of the perpetrators were still there.
Our security cameras can be placed strategically around the property, allowing our monitoring personnel to be able to watch multiple areas simultaneously. This differs greatly from a traditional guard or security patrol who can only be in one place at a time and see what is directly around them.
If you’re looking for a more effective security system for your shopping center or commercial property that gets greater coverage for up to 60 percent less than traditional security solutions, contact us.
