Police are launching an eight-week project to focus on crime prevention in Toronto’s Chinatown neighbourhood.

Project Blue Stallion, named in honour of the Chinese Year of the Horse, will focus on retail theft, theft from vehicles, panhandling, intoxication and drugs, police said in a statement Monday.

They are being "proactive" by directing additional officers to the area, visiting local businesses to review crime-prevention strategies. They'll also deploy officers to educate residents and visitors on the importance of locking car doors and hiding valuables.

In the statement, police also outlined their plan to tackle spray-paint vandalism. Working with the Chinatown Business Improvement Area, local youth and the City of Toronto, police will apprehend any offenders defacing or damaging property.

Police encourage anyone who witnesses an act of vandalism or any other crime to immediately call 911.

Anyone with information on illegal activity in the area is asked to call police at 416-808-5200, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-8477 (TIPS), text TOR and their message to 274637 (CRIMES) or leave a tip online or on Facebook.