You might want to watch your back if you live on Capitol Hill, as the last five days have seen 23 robberies in the MPD’s 1st District. Compared with five robberies two weekends ago, residents of the terrorized area are feeling a little on edge about wandering around a neighborhood that is generally pretty safe.

MPD-1 and Hill East listservs have been abuzz since Saturday with news of the daring robberies, many of which occurred during daylight hours in relatively high-traffic areas. Blogs like PSA 102 and District Matters, as well as The Post and the Examiner (which strangely refers to Hill East as “upscale”) are covering the sharp up tick in the violent robberies. Ward 6 Councilman Tommy Wells has issued a release on the crimes as well, stating that MPD is shifting its Robbery Task Force from its 3rd District (Dupont-Logan-Shaw north to Mt. Pleasant-Columbia Heights-Petworth) to the 1st. This seems to be worthwhile, as several incidents involved the victims being held at gunpoint or knifepoint; two people were even hit in the head with 2 x 4s.

After the jump you can find a list of the 15 robberies that occurred on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Thus far, only four arrests have been made, but considering that eight more robberies occurred Monday and Tuesday, it doesn’t sound like MPD has the right group of people who are committing these crimes. Police say to be on the lookout for three suspects in a silver car, which has been involved in several of the incidents. If you have any information on these crimes, or have been an eyewitness to any of them, I’m sure MPD would like to hear what you have to say.

Image from AlbinoFlea.