Savannah police set traps for convenience store robbers

<p>Robbers beware.</p><p>Members of a new police unit have begun hiding in the back of convenience stores in an effort to catch robbers in the act.</p><p>Detectives may be hiding in freezers, back rooms or closets. And they pick a different store each night where they wait for criminals to strike.</p><p>"They could be walking into a trap _ a police trap," Savannah Police Chief Dan Flynn said.</p><p>So far, police have not stopped any robberies but they have arrested a shoplifter.</p><p>But Lt. Richard Zapal, who heads the unit, says only four armed robberies were reported in January. That is evidence the program is working, he said.</p><p>"It's word of mouth," Zapal said. "The thugs are telling their friends to watch out."</p><p>According to police records, commercial robberies went down 14 percent last year, going from 177 in 2003 to 143 in 2004.</p><p>"We're trying everything to make people feel safe," Zapal said. "Robbery was lower last year than it has been in a while, but we want to keep it that way."</p><p>___</p><p>HASH(0x28667b0)</p>