ROCKFORD (WIFR) -- Armed robberies certainly take an emotional toll--they also can be quite expensive for the community.

Through the beginning of September there were almost 17 hundred robberies and burglaries in Rockford this year. They've cost the city and local businesses thousands of dollars.

Every homicide costs the Rockford Police Department about 2-million dollars. While it's not as easy to put a dollar amount on every break-in there's no doubt that businesses pay.

Beefing up security, training staff, and closing down early all cost something, especially when customers are too afraid to show up. Marie's Pizza has been closed since Saturday night and that means lost revenue.

According to the National Center for Victims of Crime on average a robber will only walk away from a crime with nine hundred dollars. A robbery will cost business and law enforcement about 19 thousand dollars.

Rockford Police say most armed robberies happen at night between 7:30 and 10:30.

Private security systems for small business can cost anywhere from 300 to thousands of dollars with a monthly fee.