The Casper Police Department is sharing crime statistics following a two-month campaign to decrease stolen firearms in Casper.

Over the last ten years, local data reflects January as the top month for gun thefts. This two-month campaign, which took place between November 8, 2021, and January 8, 2022, utilized daily social media postings reminding citizens to secure their homes, cars, and firearms.

The primary goal of the campaign was to bring awareness to a troubling issue in Casper, firearms left inside of unattended vehicles. Paired with an ongoing issue of auto-burglaries within the community, the number of stolen firearms has been increasing in Casper over the last several years. This campaign is one of the many ways the Casper Police Department is addressing the specific issue of keeping firearms out of the hands of criminals.

The campaign ran between the dates of November 8, 2021, and January 8, 2022. During that time, fifteen firearms were stolen in Casper. Between November 8, 2019, and January 8, 2020, twenty-four firearms were stolen within our community. The following year, between November 8, 2020, and January 8, 2021, twenty-three firearms were stolen.

That results in about a 35% decrease in stolen firearms following the campaign, as compared to the last two years.

“Keeping guns out of the hands of criminals is a top effort of the Casper Police Department,” said Casper Police Investigations Lieutenant Ben Mattila. “Our investigations uncover stolen firearms and the use of stolen firearms in many crimes in our community. The primary goal of this campaign was to not only decrease the number of stolen firearms – but to also bring a strong awareness to this issue. We remain committed to the citizens of Casper to bring those responsible for committing these crimes to justice while continuing our efforts to bring awareness to ways we can work together with our community to keep Casper safe.”

The Casper Police Department is dedicated to the protection and safety of our community through the highest standards of professionalism in police services.