cerritos neighborhood watch report

CERRITOS NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH REPORT
HARDENING THE TARGET
January 2015
“Crookology 101:” Simple Strategies for Reducing Your Crime Risk
There was considerable good news to
report on the crime-fighting front in Cerritos
as 2014 came to a close. Overall Part I crime
(the eight index crimes reported annually to
the FBI) declined by approximately 16 percent
compared to the previous year. Although violent
crime (murder, rape, assaults, robbery) did
increase slightly by 1.2 percent, serious crime
continued to be reported at historic lows. There
were no homicides in 2014 and two rapes were
reported during the entire year (both involving
individuals in personal relationships). General
felony assaults decreased by 11 percent from the
previous year, but robbery did increase slightly
from 42 in 2013 to 49 this past year. By way
of reference, there were 97 robberies reported
in Cerritos 10 years ago. The other good news
is that residential burglaries also declined
substantially this past year, from 228 in 2013 to
183 in 2014.
While it’s great to report decreases in crime,
we must also keep in mind that Cerritos remains
an attractive target for thieves. With two large
regional shopping centers, hundreds of retail
businesses and countless quiet residential
neighborhoods, there is a plentiful supply of
potential crime victims and valuable property
easily accessible from two major freeways and the
13 off-ramps that exit into the City. With many
thefts and narcotics offenses now resulting in
citations rather than arrests due to voter-approved
Proposition 47 this past November, the good news
about crime reduction may not last forever.
Keep in mind that you don’t have to be a
crime victim. Most of the crimes committed in
Cerritos every year involve some type of theft.
While our Sheriff’s deputies work hard to keep
Cerritos neighborhoods safe, the greatest strategy
for reducing and preventing crime in our City
is an alert and educated group of residents who
regularly practice simple safe-living strategies.
Most thieves are opportunists who often steal
property that can be easily protected if owners
would routinely practice simple precautionary
measures.
There are many simple ways to lower your
crime risk. As we enter a new year, following
are some safety tips offered by the Cerritos
Community Safety Division staff that can keep
you from needlessly becoming a victim.
• Hardly a week goes by in Cerritos when
someone doesn’t lose a purse or wallet
from their parked car while walking or
exercising at a local gym or park. Window
glass cannot protect your valuables from
determined thieves. It is recommended
that you only take your driver’s license and
workout clothes when going to work out. In
addition, never leave valuables, especially
frequently targeted purses or laptops, in
your car when you park at a shopping mall.
Vehicle burglary is the most common felony
crime in Cerritos and it’s easy to avoid being
a victim.
• Irreplaceable items such as heirloom jewelry
or coin collections should be kept in a bank
safety deposit box, not in your bedroom
dresser. Home safes in closets protect valuables from fires, but every year a few Cerritos
residents lose large, heavy safes when their
homes are burglarized.
• Consider installing a burglar alarm. Rarely
is a home in Cerritos burglarized that has a
monitored alarm system.
• Never purchase a Green Dot or similar
money card and provide the personal identification number (PIN) to a “government
agent” who has called you and claimed
you owe money to the IRS. No government
agency at any level calls and demands you
purchase a money card to resolve a problem.
The same applies to calls from “relatives in
distress” who need money for medical or
legal problems. These scammers are never
caught and your money is never recovered.
• Buying or selling something on Craigslist or
similar websites? If so, arrange to meet the
buyer or seller in the lobby of the Cerritos
Sheriff’s Station (or at least the parking lot).
This past year several people reported meeting a prospective buyer or seller in a public
place and then being robbed of either their
item or the money they had brought to make
the purchase.
Be alert, be aware and remember, If You
See Something, Say Something.
Monthly Crime Summary: December 2014
There were 77 Part I felony crimes reported
to the Cerritos Sheriff’s Station in December.
That figure is a slight decrease from the 81
in November, and also includes seven crimes
reported that occurred in previous months, but
were reported in December. At the close of 2014
there was good news to report about year-end
crime totals. As mentioned in this month’s crime
prevention article, there were no murders and
two rapes reported in 2014. The separate general
category of aggravated assaults showed a decline
of 11 percent compared to 2013. Robberies did
increase by about 17 percent last year, but that
was largely due to an increase in shoplifting/
robberies where suspects fought with loss prevention officers when captured.
There were no Green Dot money card scams
reported in December, but residents should remain aware of this crime. Remember, no government agency or official (police officer, IRS agent,
etc.) will ever call you and ask you to purchase
a money card to resolve a problem. Whether it
be a tax issue, an outstanding arrest warrant or
a relative that needs bail or money for medical bills, if you are directed to buy one or more
money cards and call back with the personal
identification number (PIN), this is a scam. This
past year several Cerritos residents lost hundreds
and even thousands of dollars by falling for this
scam. No one is ever arrested and no money is
ever recovered. Please pass on this information,
especially to older friends and relatives.
Continued on other side 
A PUBLICATION OF THE CITY OF CERRITOS AND THE LOS ANGELES COUNTY SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENT
P.O. Box 3130  Cerritos, CA 90703  safercerritos.com
MONTHLY CRIME SUMMARY: December 2014
 Continued from the other side
Robberies
There were four robberies in December, three
of which occurred during the first 11 days of
the month. An individual reported that he was
sleeping in his car adjacent to Brookhaven at
about 1 p.m. when a suspect holding a large
rifle woke him and robbed him of his wallet and
cell phone. The suspect ran to a waiting vehicle
and fled. A juvenile was riding his skateboard
on Norwalk Boulevard near 195th Street at
about 7:30 a.m. when he claims someone hit
him, causing him to fall from the skateboard.
The victim could provide no description except
that a figure in dark clothing rode off with the
skateboard. The third robbery was reported
by a young man who told Sheriff’s deputies
he was robbed at gunpoint near Bettencourt
Park by an acquaintance as he was selling the
suspect prescription pills. Two suspects were
later arrested for this robbery. The last robbery
in December occurred on Christmas Eve when a
shoplifting suspect was arrested for fighting with
loss prevention officers outside of Home Depot.
Aggravated Assaults
Four aggravated assaults were reported last
month, although one occurred in October. The
October occurrence involved a baseball bat being
used in a fight that broke out during a baseball
game at Gahr High School. The three assaults in
December were domestic violence cases and all
resulted in arrests. Outside Walmart a man hit
his girlfriend in the face and backed his car into
her. He was taken into custody by responding
deputies. In front of a residence on Alida Street
a man and woman were arguing inside of a
parked car. The boyfriend struck his girlfriend
several times, causing her to lose consciousness.
He also was arrested by responding deputies.
And finally, a married couple residing on Lusk
Avenue was involved in an argument resulting
in the husband hitting his wife and the wife
threatening her husband with a knife. Both went
to jail.
Residential Burglaries
The efforts of our Burglary Suppression Team
and alert residents appear to be paying off. There
(562) 916 -1266
Cerritos Community Safety Division
(562) 860-0044
Cerritos Sheriff’s Station
were 10 residential burglaries in December, a
decrease from the 14 reported in November.
Included in the total were three garages that had
doors left open, making it easier to be entered by
thieves. In addition to the three open garages,
thieves also entered homes through unlocked rear
windows on four occasions. A home on Carolyn
Street was burglarized while being fumigated (our
Sheriff’s have alarms available for residents to
protect homes being fumigated). Losses include
a rifle, a camera, two purses, tools, a golf bag
and clubs, and a safe containing a large amount
of cash and Social Security cards (which should
probably be stored in a bank safety deposit box).
Commercial/Other Structure
Burglaries
Eleven commercial or other structure
burglaries were reported in December, one of
which was an attempted burglary at a warehouse.
Five burglaries were also reported at the same
self-storage facility on Valley View Avenue. In fact,
five of the 11 burglaries reported occurred at this
storage facility. Detectives noted that there are no
surveillance cameras at the location. It should
also be noted that this facility has had numerous
burglaries over the last several months. Losses
include tools, coin collections and clothing.
Other commercial burglaries involved two
lockers at fitness centers, a closed gas station and
a restaurant.
Vehicle Burglaries
There were 21 vehicle burglaries in December
(one was an attempt), an increase of six
compared to 15 reported in November. Of that
figure, only two of the involved vehicles were
parked in residential areas. Likely due to the
increase in holiday shopping, the remainder of
the crimes occurred in commercial or public
parking lots. Despite the large concentration of
parked cars, only two vehicle burglaries occurred
at Los Cerritos Center and five at the Cerritos
Towne Center in December. In most cases
vehicle windows were shattered. Losses included
five purses, an iPad, a laptop computer and
miscellaneous bags and backpacks.
Grand Thefts
There were 14 grand thefts reported last
month, although five of these occurred in prior
months. Three of the earlier crimes involved
fake or fraudulent checks. One involved a
resident selling a vehicle online, receiving
a check from the buyer and then sending a
portion back to cover shipping expenses. Always
be wary of deals where you receive a check from
an unknown party who directs you to deposit
the check and then send back a portion from
your own checking account. These are common
scams and you won’t realize it until several days
later when your bank advises you the original
check was a fake. Unfortunately, the check you
send to the scammer wasn’t fake and now you
are out some cash. Other losses included two
women who lost wallets while shopping at Los
Cerritos Center, a large amount of clothing
stolen from Macy’s and 20 pairs of sunglasses
from a business, also at Los Cerritos Center.
Grand Thefts Vehicle
While vehicle burglaries increased in
December, vehicle thefts decreased. There
were 13 vehicles stolen in Cerritos last month
(one was a commercial trailer), compared to
19 in November and 21 in October. Nine of
the 13 reports involved older model Japanese
vehicles, and seven of the nine were stolen from
commercial parking lots. It should be noted
that of those nine vehicles, six were recovered in
various nearby cities.
To join Cerritos Neighborhood Watch,
call the Cerritos Sheriff’s Station/
Community Safety Center
at (562)
916-1266.