Philadelphia Gas Station Owner Enlists Heavily Armed Security Guards to Protect Store from Rampant Crime
A gas station and convenience store owner in Philadelphia, Neil Patel, has hired Pennsylvania S.I.T.E Agents armed with AR-15s and shotguns to protect his storefront from the ever increasing crime in the liberal city.
Patel told a Fox News affiliate that the “final straw” was when his store was ransacked by vandals who stole his ATM and destroyed his personal vehicle during the robbery. Patel claims that the city officials are “forcing” storeowners to beef up security, by allowing the rampant crime to increase significantly year over year.
“They are forcing us to hire the security, high-level security, state level. We are tired of this nonsense; robbery, drug trafficking, hanging around, gangs.”
Neil Patel
The decision to hire the heavily armed guards has been received well by some in the community who feel more secure at that location, but others have been less than thrilled by the militarized convenience store.
“I listen to [the complaints], but according to some people, violent people — they carry the guns — they’re not afraid of them?”
“This is the protection for the neighborhood and the customers.”
Neil Patel
Patel told Fox 29 that loitering and “other crimes” have all decreased since hiring the security, creating a safer environment for workers and customers alike. But he isn’t the only one in Philadelphia who is tired of the crime, many residents have frequently complained online regarding the high homicide rates in the city.
Police officers in Philadelphia have to wear ballistic protective vests while on patrol in the city, and it has even been recommended that they receive hazard pay due to the dire working conditions. Many who support this idea hope that hazard pay will encourage officers to remain in the line of duty, as many have left in search of greener pastures. By the end of fiscal year 2019 there were 6,590 officers employed in the city, compared to 5,983 at the end of fiscal year 2022.
Despite the fact that violent crimes, including gun crimes, homicides, carjackings, and robberies are all increasingly common in Philadelphia, the District Attorney, Larry Krasner, said that he does not believe convicting individuals who are illegally in possession of a firearm is a productive way to prevent gun crime.
“We do not believe that arresting people and convicting them for illegal gun possession is a viable strategy to reduce shootings.”
Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner
Officers can do their job, to the best of their ability, by identifying individuals who illegally possess a firearm for any reason, for example if they are a convicted felon, and arrest them — but it is entirely ineffective if city prosecutors refuse to convict and punish criminals. The idea that being soft on crime somehow lowers the overall crime rate by creating a “more equitable environment” has been refuted time and time again. This is simply an incentive for criminals to continue ignoring the laws in place because of the total lack of consequences.
At the end of the day, criminals do not suffer any repercussions, storeowners like Neil Patel and those living in the community do.
