'It's Happening Everywhere': Suburban Mayors Team Up To Address Crime

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A third suspect in a string of suburban carjackings remains at large.

But Twin Cities mayors aren't letting crime just happen. They are forming an unprecedented alliance to fight back.

For months, suburban residents have watched as violent crimes have devastated Minneapolis and St. Paul. St. Paul has broken a record for the number of homicides, and Minneapolis is getting close to breaking its record that was set 26 years ago. This year in Minneapolis, there have been 610 carjackings so far. In 2020 there were 388 carjackings.

READ MORE: 2 Teenagers Plead Guilty To Several Twin Cities Carjackings

Now the violent crime wave has come to the suburbs. After attempted carjacking at Lunds & Byerlys stores in Edina and St. Louis Park earlier this month, five metro area mayors met and have formed a coalition to fight crime. In a letter announcing the pact the mayors are promising to share their police resources, including investigation information. Edina Mayor Jim Hovland, one of those mayors, was a guest on WCCO Sunday Morning.

"It's happening everywhere. I got a call from the mayor of Lake Elmo, they've had almost as many car thefts or attempted car thefts as Edina," he said. "Inver Grove Heights, you know, all over the metro mayors are calling with concerns that they have "

The other cities in the coalition are Bloomington, Eden Prairie, Minnetonka and Plymouth. In their joint letter, the mayors say "when one city experiences an increase in crime it affects all of us," and that as mayors, they are committed to protecting citizens and preserving the high quality of life they deserve.

You can watch WCCO Sunday Morning with Esme Murphy and Mike Augustyniak every Sunday at 6 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.