The Meridian Police Department is relaunching a partnership with local businesses to deter shoplifting, burglary and other business crimes.

The Business Alert Network, which is modeled after neighborhood watch programs, is a cooperative effort between law enforcement and businesses to report, deter and prevent business-related crimes.

At a meeting Thursday Lt. Rita Jack, who serves as MPD’s Crime Prevention Coordinator, said BAN was initially started in 2019 along with several neighborhood watch programs, but the COVID-19 pandemic, which arrived shortly after the programs’ launch, put the initiatives on pause.

Now, Jack said, MPD is working to relaunch BAN and get businesses involved with the program. BAN incorporates networking, guidance and training to reduce crime in businesses and send a message to criminals that Meridian businesses are not easy targets, she said.

“To do that we have to start somewhere, and today is that start,” she said.

Jack said MPD needs local businesses to take an “active role” in preventing crimes. That means reporting crimes when they occur, sharing information with police officers and calling when business owners see suspicious people or activities in the area.

“It’s as simple as picking up the phone, calling our dispatch and saying, ‘I don’t know what this is, but it doesn’t look right,’” she said.

The BAN organization, Jack said, will have regular meetings to share concerns with law enforcement and receive training from police officers on how to identify crime and prevent criminal activity.

Jack said all local businesses are encouraged to participate in the BAN program to help prevent business crime in Meridian.

For more information, contact Jack at 601-513-6916.