Oakland police roll out mobile command post

Oakland police are rolling out a command post on wheels as part of their strategy to fight crime in the city.

With robberies and other crimes on the rise across the city, police Wednesday night deployed their mobile command post into two areas seeing a big jump in robberies — 24th St. and Telegraph Avenue, and Grand Avenue and Bellevue Street.

Besides acting as a visual deterrent, the unit is loaded with electronic equipment, including surveillance cameras mounted on top of the mobile command post.

Oakland police Officer Jim Gordon told KTVU-TV the cameras and technology inside the command center let police keep an eye on an area covering four blocks:

“It brings the police station out into the community.”

The unit is part of the police department’s new plan to fight rising crime in the city, including dividing the city into five districts, with officers in those districts focusing on problems specific to the district.

Area captains will determine where the mobile unit will be located.

During a press conference Thursday, Oakland officials released more information about Oakland’s crime rate, and their strategy to try to reduce it, noting some of the biggest problems are robberies, violence and human trafficking.