CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD)- The Charleston Police Department is working to make the city a safer place, and rolling out a new unit thanks to a grant.

In May of 2021, CPD began implementing enhanced safety measures on King Street amid rising crime in the area.

Things like reversing the flow of traffic, additional patrols and a new city-subsidized program to catch fake ID’s have reduced crime in the time since.

Now, the department is turning up the heat even more, introducing a new vice unit.

“The upcoming vice unit that we’re going to have is structured within our special investigations unit,” CPD Public Information Officer, Anthony Gibson said.

The department is using a grant to fund this training and tools for the unit, which will be made up of one Sergent and two detectives.

Gibson said, “They’re going to be focused on things like underage drinking, fake ID’s, gambling, prostitution.”

The undercover unit will focus on crimes that often fly under the radar.

“You may think about this crime as not that serious. Kids just drinking or gambling,” Gibson said.

However, CPD says those crimes have ripple effects on the community.

“What we often see and what the evidence tells us is that these crimes have secondary and tertiary effects for other crimes,” Gibson said.

Eliminating those root causes with the new vice unit is just another way CPD is working to keep the holy city safe.