ROANOKE, Va.- – Vinton police released their crime numbers for 2017.
Chief Tom Foster reported that there were 250 drug cases in 2017, a 187 percent from 2016's 87 cases.
Traffic stops were up 84 percent. In 2017, there were 90 DUI arrests, while there were only 54 in 2016. And overall criminal arrests went from 462 to 777.
The Vinton Police Department said that arrest numbers are up because more officers are out on the streets patrolling.
"You're going to uncover more things. So it's not necessarily that crime rate is spiking. It's our officers are being much more proactive in reaching out to the community and reacting to that and addressing their concerns," Capt. Fabricio Drumond, of the Vinton Police Department, said.