SEATTLE -- In the wake of violent robberies in Seattle's Rainier Valley neighborhood, several residents walked around the community Sunday night, looking to identify potential safety risks in the area.
Close to 40 people gathered for the event, which started at the Holly Park Community Church near South Othello Street and Martin Luther King Way South and covered several blocks.
Organizers picked the location because several of the attacks have happened within a few blocks of the Othello Link Light Rail station, including one that led to the death of hairstylist Danny Vega several weeks ago.
The Southeast Seattle Crime Prevention Council and the Othello Neighborhood Association invited Seattle Police to help lead the walk.
"[The] Columbia City [neighborhood] used to be a mess," said council president Pat Murakami, "and neighbors came out in force. They walked their dogs late at night, and the trouble moved away."
"If people will come out and walk as a group, then the criminals will go elsewhere. they have no interest in being some place where they're going to be seen," she added.
Along the walk, neighbors and officers took notes on anything that might help a criminal stay out of sight, such as an overgrown bush along a sidewalk, a lamppost with no light or graffiti on a brick wall.
Some of the reported incidents involve the suspects surprising victims distracted by phones or music players. Tonight, police asked neighbors to leave those items out of sight as they walked around.
"The attitude now is people are afraid," said volunteer Nhan Thai, who was accosted in September by several men who stole his jacket and keys, an incident reminiscent of the Danny Vega attack. "There were a lot more incidents that happened that we didn't know about prior to my incident and even after Danny's."
Thai says this walk is a chance to speak up and speak out. They're also holding another safety walk Monday night, gathering at 7pm at the Boys and Girls Club near the Columbia City light rail stop.
"With all the neighbors coming out, we're actually having concrete activities both short term and long term to make sure that our neighborhood is more safe," said Thai.
Volunteers say they plan to compile their observations into a report that they can give to city leaders and neighbors, all in hopes of creating safer pedestrian walkways.
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