By Robert Hudson

The Selma Times-Journal

The Selma Police Department is looking to unite local businesses in order to combat crime.

The department will host ‘Business Watch’ on Aug. 29 at the training building on 1300 Alabama Ave. in order to help local businesses avoid becoming victims.

“Businesses are being victimized as far as robberies and theft in the city,” said Sgt. Natasha Rozzell, who helped put the event together.

Rozzell said ‘Business Watch’ aims to be similar to a neighborhood watch, only for businesses.

“It’s open to any business in the city,” Rozzell said. “All businesses are welcome.”

Rozzell said business owners who attend will learn about emergency preparedness, how to protect themselves, their employees and customers and how to spot suspicious activity and look out for their fellow business owners.

“We’ll talk about how to avoid and what to do in case of a robbery, how to handle suspicious activities and how to handle thefts,” Rozzell said. “We’ll also talk about how to handle suspicious individuals who you suspect of stealing and how to relay that information to your neighbor.”

Various security measures to protect businesses will also be discussed.

“We’ll also talk about security measures, such as how often you need to check those to make sure they’re working properly,” Rozzell said. “Another thing that will be covered is how to handle employee theft. Anything dealing with safety measures will be covered and we’ll take ideas and suggestions from them (business owners) to learn what’s been going on with their business.”