Santa Cruz Police

Ladies and Gentlemen…….. (drumroll please!)

Introducing the newest member of the Santa Cruz Police Department…Officer Scott Freeman.

Today, Scott was sworn-in as a Police Officer, by Chief Kevin Vogel.

Scott brings some solid policing skills and knowledge to our department. Scott comes to us with just over 12 years of experience at the Scotts Valley Police Department where he worked as a training officer, detective, and team member for their SWAT.

Scott is an Army veteran where he was a sergeant and served as a Special Agent for United States Counter-Intelligence.

Scott and his family are grounded in the local community. His wife Ann is an amazing English teacher at Scotts Valley High School…my kids & their friends say she’s “the bomb!” (that comment has nothing to do with finals being graded) Thank God she doesn’t grade my blog posts!!

With Scott's hiring, the staffing situation continues to improve here at SCPD. Over the past year we have hired 16 Police Officers. We are currently up to full staffing +1 overfill (for anticipated retirements). Those numbers include our 4 currently in the academy, and 8 that are currently out on long-term injuries.

Please join us in welcoming Officer Scott Freeman to our SCPD family.

OK Contestants, you did so well with Round 1, you have qualified for Round 2.

In this round we only have one suspect, but pictures from multiple locations.

Officer Trevor Kendall is even offering to throw in a bag of SCPD's finest Station House Coffee, for the person that can identify our suspect.

Here's your clues:

I steal things from cars. I am particularly fond of credit and debit cards that I can use to charge a lot of things at Safeway and 7-11. I am described as a white, male, 22-26 years old, blond or light brown buzz cut with a small build.

I have even been known to carry a cigarette behind my ear doing my "Best James Dean". (that was for you John Cougar Mellancamp fans)

As Always, you can contact our Investigations Unit with your tips, or use our Anonymous Tip Line at (831) 420-5995

You can also leave an anonymous tip via our Website at www.santacruzpolice.com, or our Smartphone App available for Apple and Droid. And don't forget to collect your bag of coffee from Officer Kendall.

The police scanner feature on our iPhone and Droid mobile app was down for a short while. The problem has been resolved and we are now back on the air. To those who let us know about the problem, thank you.

For those interested in listening to our police scanner using your desktop or laptop computer, simply click on the link below:

SCPD Scanner Feed

Day 2 at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Ceremonies as part of National Police Week.

Our team kept plenty busy with activities and touring.

Officer Ganzel making an outline impression of Sergeant Baker’s place on the wall while Officer Trog appears to be supervising.

The day included a tour of Nationals Park, home of the Washington Nationals baseball team.

We secretly put a whammy on the place to help out our Giants in their next visit. Sergeant Mike Harms heated up in the bullpen…..just in case!

Back here in Santa Cruz, Mayor Robinson presented Deputy Chief Martinez with a Proclamation honoring National Police Week.

The day is wrapping up with a candlelight vigil.

The Butler family with Officer Karina Cecena

The Baker family at the vigil

Candlelight Vigil crowd gathering

Drum Corps at Candlelight Vigil

Chief Vogel at the vigil

We were able to live-stream the vigil to the police department where we were able to watch the ceremony and feel a part of our family back in Washington. But....As only Butch and Elizabeth would have it....there was a rain delay of the ceremony.

As of this hour they have not yet started back up from the rain delay.

Mayor Lynn Robinson and Councilmember Pamela Comstock loaded us up with good things to eat while we waited and watched.

Join us this Thursday June 19^th for a “Virtual Ride-Along”.

You ask, “What is a Virtual Ride-Along”?

Simple....we will be spending the day with Officer Carly Cross. Carly will be accompanied by our Admin Assistant Kimberlee Steele, who will be Tweeting out all the activity that Carly and her team encounter during their shift.

They will be working the dayshift, most likely in the Central beat. The shift starts at 7:30 AM and is scheduled to end at 5:30 PM.

Follow us on Twitter @SantaCruzPolice. We will also be tagging each of the Tweets with #ridewithSCPD on the day of the Ride-Along.

While the Ride-Along may be “Virtual”, the action and activity will be very real.

Kimberlee will be tweeting out information on each of the calls and activities Carly encounters. She will also Tweet out photos and Vine video of the various activities. We will also have some stats and other interesting information throughout the day.

If all goes well, we will expand this with future Ride-Alongs on other shifts.

Since the bag of station house coffee reward was such a big hit, we are going to “up the ante” for Round 3 of "Name That Thief".

For the correct tip that identifies these suspects, we are giving away this authentic baseball signed by the SCPD Detectives. Sure to be a collector’s item???

Here are your clues:

Case #1

On May 17^th, I broke into a parked car on Lincoln Street in Santa Cruz. I took a wallet, drill set and walkie-talkies. I proceeded to go on a shopping spree with my new stolen credit cards and made 10 separate purchases from places like Ross, Office Max, CVS, Woodstock’s Pizza and the like.

I also haul around a skateboard and a backpack.

Sometimes, I like to tuck my long hair into a stocking cap.

Please help the police catch me, so I don’t make more victims in your community. Refer to Detective Brian Warren and Case #14S-03947

Case #2

On May 25^th, I smashed a back window on a car in the 500 block of Buena Vista. Rifling through the car, I found a wallet full of credit cards. I used my newfound riches to buy things at Valero, Home Depot and Target.

I have formed a partnership with this guy, who helped me spend some of the victim’s money.

We need to get caught so we don’t steal things in your neighborhoods. Refer to Detective Brian Warren and Case #14S-20800

Case #3

On June 13^th I casually walked into Walgreens on Front Street with my own shopping bags. I proceeded to fill my empty bags with merchandise from the store. It is important to be a well-dressed thief, and I found I was drawn to clothing like T-Shirts and Hoodies that had “Santa Cruz” printed on them. I also took several pairs of socks to match my new shirts.

I casually walked out of the store and got on a black cruiser style bike and rode away.

If you see me selling these things, I am not a licensed vendor and my merchandise is a little “warm to the touch”....if you know what I mean?

Refer to Officer Carly Cross and Case #14S-04798.

As Always, you can contact our Investigations Unit with your tips, or use our Anonymous Tip Line at (831) 420-5995

You can also leave an anonymous tip via our Website at www.santacruzpolice.com, or our Smartphone App available for Apple and Droid

Chief Kevin Vogel took to the local radio airwaves this morning. Along with his trusty Deputy Chief sidekick, the two dusted off their "radio voices" and were guests on KSCO’s Good Morning Monterey Bay with Rosie Chalmers.

These two have worked together their entire careers and have over 55 years of local law enforcement experience between the two of them.

The Chief talked with Rosie on everything from the upcoming police department budget, staffing levels, July 4^th preparations, Safety Enhancement Zone and fireworks enforcement, to the department’s use of Social Media to catch crooks….like this blog.

On the budget, the City Council is expected to complete the final budget approval for our Fiscal Year 2015 budget. In that, the police department is focusing on strengthening our core services and long overdue equipment replacement. The department will also be restructuring some of our civilian personnel to improve efficiency and better meet needs.

On overall police staffing, we are proud to announce that we are fully staffed in the sworn police officer ranks. This is the first time in many, many years we have been able to make this declaration! We will pause for you all to do the wave!!! We have actually hired 16 police officers over the last year. We currently have a team of 4 attending the police academy. They are expected to graduate the academy and placed in the field training program in September. We are recruiting for Police Records Technician and Police Property Attendant positions.

On July 4^th, this is an “All Hands on Deck” situation for the department throughout the entire July 4^th weekend. We will have teams deployed in and around West Cliff, Main Beach (Boardwalk) and Seabright areas…..We will also have added patrols to the rest of the city to address our regular onslaught of calls for service. Fireworks enforcement is a particular concern this year with the extremely dry conditions surrounding the city. Throughout the weekend, the police department will respond to literally hundreds of fireworks calls in neighborhoods.

The City Council will be considering a citywide Safety Enhancement Zone for the July 4^th weekend to address the increased fire danger posed by fireworks this year. The Safety Enhancement Zone creates a “Triple Fine” for certain Municipal Code violations, including fireworks. The measure is intended to serve as a deterrent when individuals consider the cost of a fireworks citation.

Finally, our use of Social Media has been a huge success with our “Name That Thief” feature. We are running about 75% success rate with tips on theft suspects placed on the blog from surveillance photos. Great job Santa Cruz!!! The department also completed our first Virtual Ride Along last week, Tweeting out the day’s activities for Officer Carly Cross on day shift.

Keep naming those thieves, and keep tuned to our blog and Facebook to see what we are up to.

Several years ago, the Santa Cruz Police Department created a specialized unit whose primary focus was suppression of crimes of violence, gangs and drugs. This highly effective team was called the Street Crimes Unit. A few years ago, we had to scale back the number of personnel assigned to this team as a result of staffing shortages caused by long-term injuries, retirements and attrition. The police department currently has 94 sworn police officer positions that are funded in our annual budget, however in April, 2013 the City Council authorized us to hire up to five additional police officer positions in anticipation of upcoming retirements. Recently, the Santa Cruz Police Department has achieved full staffing of 94 sworn staff. We just hired a police officer to fill our first overfill police officer position in May, bringing our complement of sworn staff to 95. We anticipate hiring a few more overfill positions within the next few months. We currently have two police officers in our field training program and four police recruits in the police academy.

With our recent success of achieving full staffing, we have been able to staff the specialized unit, formerly known as the Street Crimes Unit, with a sergeant (supervisor) and a full complement of police officers. The fully-staffed unit went back in service on Saturday May 24^th. With the reformation of this unit, we decided to freshen things up a little with a name change. This unit is now called our Neighborhood Enforcement Team (N.E.T.). The name change more accurately reflects the team’s primary focus on criminal issues that affect the quality of life within our neighborhoods. The mission of the Neighborhood Enforcement Team will be to enhance the safety of our neighborhoods by addressing criminal concerns through resource collaboration and varied enforcement efforts. The goal of the Neighborhood Enforcement Team will be neighborhood improvement through inter-departmental and inter-agency cooperation.

The Neighborhood Enforcement Team has hit the ground running since its inception on May 24^th. During their first month, they effectively addressed the following neighborhood crime issues:

· 27 proactive* felony arrests

· 17 proactive misdemeanor arrests

· Participated in narcotic enforcement with Santa Cruz County Anti-Crime Team

· Participated in prostitution enforcement with Santa Cruz County Anti-Crime Team

· Participated in uniformed and plain clothes directed enforcement in neighborhoods

· Recovered a handgun and arrested four suspects during a vehicle stop following a shooting incident on West Cliff Drive

As we move forward, the Neighborhood Enforcement Team will focus their efforts in the following areas:

· Collaborate with our Community Services Unit to identify problem locations

· Collaborate with neighborhood groups to address nuisance issues, both criminal and non-criminal

· Continue directed enforcement in neighborhoods

· Narcotic and prostitution enforcement in collaboration with the Santa Cruz County Anti-Crime Team

· Conduct home visits and searches of persons on active probation and parole

· Collaborate with various SCPD specialized units to address criminal activity downtown and in our parks and open spaces

· Assist the Patrol Division with high priority calls for service

· Assist Investigations Division in locating/apprehending wanted fugitives

The Santa Cruz Police Department Neighborhood Enforcement Team is committed to improving the quality of life in our neighborhoods and throughout our City through proactive and creative problem solving efforts, aggressive enforcement and effective resource deployment. We are pleased to have our newly-branded Neighborhood Enforcement Team at the forefront of our efforts. The Santa Cruz Police Department strives for continuous improvement and is committed to keeping our City and our community members safe.

With thousands of visitors expected to visit Santa Cruz over the upcoming Independence Day holiday weekend, the Santa Cruz City Council has taken steps to ensure the City remains safe and clean for everyone. The Santa Cruz City Council has approved a citywide safety enhancement zone for July 4-6, 2014. This means tripling of fines for violations such as the discharge of fireworks, littering and public consumption of alcohol. With additional court costs, minimum fines will be $532.

The Santa Cruz Police Department will be actively seeking out and aggressively enforcing all violations that have been designated for triple fines under the safety enhancement zone, including the following violations of the Santa Cruz Municipal Code:

Fireworks
Possession of Open Containers or Consumption of Alcoholic Beverages in Public Places
Discharge of Firearms
Graffiti
Defacing Sidewalks
Noise Violations
Trespassing
Conduct on Public Property
Urinating/Defecating in Public

If you witness illegal fireworks being discharged or any of the violations listed above, the Santa Cruz Police Department strongly encourages you to call 9-1-1 immediately to report the incident. We ask that you are willing to assist us by signing a complaint against the person(s) responsible and be willing to testify in court, if necessary. We are relying on our partnership with the community to keep us all safe this 4th of July.

For more information, click on the following links:

City Newsroom

Information Report to City Council

Thank you and have a safe Independence Day holiday weekend.

It is time for Round 1 of July’s “Name That Thief”.

We had a successful June with a number of suspects identified through your tips. Let’s keep the momentum and see if you can help us identify July’s sticky-fingered crooks.

Here’s your clues:

My girlfriend and I decided it was time to do something with our hair, but salons can be so pricey these days. We decided to take matters into our own hands….and purses. To do our own hair, we would need professional quality products, so we visited the Westside Beauty Supply.

Using one of the oldest tricks in the book….My girlfriend or I would distract the clerk, while the other would load up our handbags with quite a few products. We headed out the door with our loot. The whole plan went so well, until we saw our pictures on the police department’s blog and Facebook. Now we stand a real good chance of getting caught. At least my hair will look good for the booking photo.

Here’s a video of me stealing hair care product and putting it in my bag.

This theft occurred on June 4^th at around 1:00 PM. Both suspects are described as white female adults in their early to mid 20’s. Both are about 5’01” one with blonde hair, and one with brown hair.

For the tipster that identifies our suspect(s), we’ll throw in a bottle of your favorite Dollar Tree shampoo autographed by the Chief!

Refer to Case #14S-04512

As Always, you can contact our Investigations Unit with your tips, or use our Anonymous Tip Line at (831) 420-5995

You can also leave an anonymous tip via our Website at www.santacruzpolice.com, or our Smartphone App available for Apple and Droid

We’re back after a short hiatus to deal with the harbor death investigation which took on a national media persona.

Round 2 of July “Name That Thief” features two cases. Both cases are from Costco, who has amazing video for us. In Case #1 we are still looking for the suspect. In case #2 we have identified and arrested the suspects. Here are your clues:

Case #1

Our suspect in this case is dubbed “El Mustachio the Magician” because he makes a Bose Soundlink speaker disappear before your very eyes…..actually after he steps behind an aisle.

Aside from his amazing magic skills, he derives his name from the predominate mustache he is sporting along with those Ugg style boots. He is described as a white male 30-40 years old. Here are still shots from the video:

This theft occurred on July 7^th at around 2:00 PM. EL Mustachio selects a Bose speaker and then ducks in behind an aisle to take the speaker out of the box and conceal it under his shirt and jacket. El Mustachio then walks out of the store failing to pay for the speaker. Too bad they can’t make is start playing music remotely!

Here is a video of El Mustachio selecting his box.

Here is a video of the magic trick. Watch closely as El Mustachio makes the box disappear while adjusting his shirt and holding his arms in that telltale “I have something hidden under my shirt” look.

Help us identify El Mustachio the Magician before he makes more merchandise disappear from our stores.

Case #2

Case #2 features that classic moment when you realize you left the store and forgot to steal everything you wanted.

On July 6^th, our two suspects entered Costco and selected electronics equipment including a universal charger and a Bose Soundlink. Point of advice here….If you buy a used Bose Soundlink, there is a high probability it is stolen, so ask to see the receipt.

They concealed their loot from the first run into the females purse and headed out the store. Then it hits them….we forgot to steal everything on the list!!! Back into the store they go.

This time they select a Blu-ray disc of the movie “Breaking Bad”…(the irony is rich here) and a pair of shoes. They go back over to the Bose Soundlinks, remove the disc from the holder and the female slips off her shoes and puts on the new shoes.

Here is a video of them doing this second theft.

This couple was destined for the Name That Thief contest, but excellent work by our officers identified them before I could get them on the blog. In a subsequent case on July 13^th, they were arrested and identified as:

Gelal Aydogu – 24 year old, Transient

Shara Agostini – 27 years old, Transient

Aydogu is already “On Probation”. Both have a history of drug related arrests.

This makes three theft cases from Costco alone. They were booked for Burglary and Conspiracy.

Santa Cruz Police PRIDE Program and BASTA Receive $25,000 Donation from Randy and Janet Krassow, Owners of Santa Cruz Memorial

Randy and Janet Krassow are just two of the nicest "coolest" people you would ever want to meet. If you were drafting a team of people to build your community, they are definite first round picks.

This generous $25,000 donation comes from the foundation that Mr. Randy Krassow created with Santa Cruz Attorney, Larry Brenner. Their private foundation was created to provide funding to local youth programs and organizations as well as youth scholarships.

Mrs. Janet Krassow, is no stranger to reaching out to help kids in our community! She was the Executive Director of the Santa Cruz Boys & Girls from 1993 until she retired in 2004. Janet was particularly pleased to make this gift; she said of this gift;

“PRIDE and BASTA are great programs that make a tremendous impact on the lives of our at-risk youth. We are proud to have been associated with these programs for the past 6 years and see this gift as our opportunity to provide further support for these worthwhile programs.”

We couldn't agree more Janet!

Mr. Randy Krassow was excited that the donated funds would go directly to our local at-risk youth intervention and prevention programs. Randy says,

“I’m proud to support the programs and want to thank Deputy Chief of Police Rick Martinez and Bryan Wall, Retired County Office of Education Deputy Superintendent, for their leadership. I want to especially acknowledge and thank Santa Cruz Police Officer Joe Hernandez. Joe brought the PRIDE program to my attention several years ago. He is committed to providing opportunities to our community’s youth and giving them the tools they need to succeed. Joe is an exemplary person and a credit to our Police Department.”

We'll add a hearty "Amen" to that Randy!

The P.R.I.D.E. program (Personally Responsible Individual Development in Ethics) is a 12 week prevention/intervention course for at risk youth ages 12 to 15. It is designed to help young teens understand the impact of their current life choices upon their futures and aid them in their decision making processes, with the ultimate goal of assisting them onto a path toward a positive, successful life. The harsh reality of negative choices and the personal success of positive choices is a theme stressed throughout the program.

BASTA(Broad Based Supervision and Treatment Alternatives) is a countywide collaborative formed for the purpose of keeping schools and the community safe by reducing and preventing youth gang violence, school truancy, suspensions, expulsions, and alcohol and drug abuse. The BASTA Steering Committee will provide oversight and engage in problem-solving, strategies by addressing the issues brought forward by the BASTA Region 1 and Region 2 Operational Teams.

OK, we might have gone a little crazy with the name acronyms....but we're government and we can't help giving everything an acronym. Bottom line....these are great programs that are making a difference and this donation is a great investment in our community!

Join us in giving a standing ovation and doing "the wave" for the Krassow family.

Our Officer was “Johnny On The Spot” early Wednesday morning as he was on patrol in the Downtown.

Don’t let this photo fool you, Officer Cathrein (pronounced Kah-Train) has cat-like reflexes and Ninja skills!

Those skills resulted in the arrest of 20 year old Joshua Tomasian of Milpitas for possession of a loaded and stolen handgun, possession of cocaine, and drug paraphernalia.

At about 1:30 in the morning, Officer Cathrein was driving south on Front Street near Soquel when the sounds of an argument caught his attention. As he contacts one of the involved parties in a parking lot, he quickly realizes this is more than just a disagreement among gentlemen!

The victim tells Officer Cathrein that three suspects confronted him and one of them brandished a handgun. As Officer Cathrein is getting this information, the suspects are trying to flee in their car.

Not to be deterred, Officer Catherein gives chase and stops the car near Riverside and Broadway. Since there was the possibility of weapons, we conducted a high-risk style car stop. This is serious business, where we shut down traffic and the occupants of the getaway car are brought out at gunpoint.

Inside the car was a loaded Sig Sauer .380 caliber handgun.

Mr. Tomasian was identified as the suspect who brandished the handgun during the confrontation. He was also found with cocaine in his possession.

According to our suspect, he and his other two friends were here in Santa Cruz to visit friends and decided to take a drive to try and buy marijuana. He and the victim couldn’t agree on how the sale would go down. Somewhere in there, Mr. Tomasian decided it was a good idea to brandish his stolen handgun. Of course, our victim knows nothing about a marijuana transaction, and he himself has a storied history of contact with our patrol staff.

Turns out the gun was reported stolen out of Sunnyvale two weeks ago. Mr Tomasian claimed he bought the gun on the streets of San Jose from some guy named “Paco”……Really???.....“Paco”.

The two other car occupants were a 27 year-old from Fremont and an 18 year-old from San Jose. There was nothing to charge them with, so they were questioned and released.

Bottom Line….Outstanding work by Officer Cathrein and the rest of his patrol team!!!

We are teaming up with our local 7–Eleven Stores® for “Operation Chill”. This program promotes positive interactions and reinforce good behavior with the kids in our community during a non-enforcement contacts.

Here’s How it Works:

Courtesy of 7–Eleven, officers are hitting the streets with “Operation Chill” coupons. When officers observe kids exhibiting good behavior, they can issue an “Operation Chill” coupon. The coupons are good for a FREE small Slurpee® drink at any one of the four 7–Eleven Stores in the City of Santa Cruz.

Special thanks to each of these stores for participating in the program. The locations are:

367 Ocean Street

218 Cardiff Place

602 Laurel Street

2429 Mission Street

Examples of behavior that will get a coupon are wearing safety helmets, observing traffic safety rules, good citizenship and good deeds, being “brave” after a traffic collision or other emergency event, etc.

The officers enjoy having something positive to reward the kids, and the kids are as excited as this photo of Sergeant Jones on the cover of the Slurpee machine box when he was a kid.

Coincidence.....we think not!!

For all you adults who are thinking about creative ways to pose as a kid to get your hands on one of these......just know, we're wise to your disguise!!

Since its inception in 1995, Operation Chill has allowed police departments to issue more than 12.5 million coupons, or “tickets” to kids in communities throughout the country. That's a serious amount of Alienade and Berry Citrus Slam, or Mountain Dew Blue Shock!!!!

The program has helped promote positive relationships while reinforcing good behavior and safety habits.

The program will last for as long as the coupons do. The coupons expire December 31, 2014.

The SCPD Neighborhood Enforcement Team has taken aim at prostitution plaguing the Ocean Street area. Their efforts have led to a number of arrests over the past week.

We plan on targeting the Ocean Street area both with decoy “Johns” (that’s customers) and decoy prostitutes (that’s authentic police officers dressing up like our local streetwalkers). Caveat Emptor!!!

Believe it or not, there are some that get on their high-horse and want to criticize police resources being used on this. Quite frankly, this is a pretty myopic view, and ill-informed. Not only are we unapologetic to those people, but we are not prepared to rationalize this behavior and surrender the impacted neighborhoods to the residual effects of this kind of business. The fact is we see the additional crime that comes in the form of drugs, gangs, violence, biohazard litter and overall blight that corrodes the neighborhood. We are sure these impacted neighborhoods would take our side on this one.

Here are some of our latest “catches”

This is Christina Reagan, 49 years old, Santa Cruz resident

She agreed to grace us with the pleasure of her company for a mere $180. The meet was arranged in the 1100 block of Ocean Street where we surprised with the fact we are “the police”. Ms. Reagan was booked in jail for Soliciting an Act of Prostitution, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, and outstanding felony warrants from Santa Clara County

This is Jose Anguiano Alfonso or “Gia”, 38 years old, Santa Cruz resident.

Gia also agreed to a meeting that would cost us $180. After agreeing to meet with us, Gia was scooped up by undercover officers near the 1100 block of Ocean Street. Gia was booked for Soliciting an Act of Prostitution.

This is Coleen Clark Chavez, 49 years old, Chico, CA resident

Coleen demanded the tidy sum of $230 for her company. She traveled all this way from Chico and never got to see the beach. She did get to tour the jail as she was booked on a charge of Soliciting an Act of Prostitution.

Meet Marie McDonald, 28 years old, Santa Cruz resident

Marie made her sales pitch to our decoy “John” on the Barson Street sidewalk. After agreeing to a brief encounter costing $20, the arrest team appeared and took her into custody. What is interesting about Marie is that she has been arrested 12 times by SCPD in the last year. Her offenses include drug and prostitution charges. And of course, she is a Probation All Star, being currently on probation for Prostitution related charges.

Finally, here is Jose Valencia-Hernandez, 34 years old, Santa Cruz resident

Jose solicited our female decoy officer with lavish riches if she would only spend time with him. After the “bust” signal was given, our arrest teams swooped in and ruined the afternoon for Jose.

That’s it for now. We will continue with these stings to help the people trying to live their lives in these affected neighborhoods.

If you are engaged in this activity…..beware, we will be there and you may find yourself explaining your picture on our blog!

The interior of our iconic Town Clock is now illuminated thanks to our local Surf City Santa Cruz Kiwanis Club. This light and plaque were installed by Kiwanis in memory of Sergeant Butch Baker and Detective Elizabeth Butler.

Their light will shine to remind us every time we pass by the clock at night.

Kelly Baker was on hand with Chief Vogel at the dedication ceremony

The Chief was also joined by the Kiwanis President Bert Bly and Bob Dewitt. Bob handled the installation of the plaque on the Town Clock.

Special Thanks to Kiwanis member Richard Emigh for being the driving force behind this project, and to Robert Matthews for his expert installation.

The kind and generous hearts in clubs like our Surf City Santa Cruz Kiwanis Club are what makes our community a great place! We are honored by your incredibly thoughtful gift to Butch and Elizabeth.

Our Teen Public Safety Academy is back for another summer of great times and cool stuff. This program is incredibly popular. Spaces fill up quickly.....so sign up now!!!!

You will have an entire week of police and fire training, including:

Daily Physical Fitness
Arrest and Control Tactics
Investigations
Crime Scenes and Evidence Processing
High Risk Car Stops
Firefighting Principals
Emergency Medical Treatment
First Aid and CPR

High Risk Car Stop Training

Arrest and Control Techniques

Physical Fitness Run

Fingerprinting and Crime Scenes

Almost Forgot...There is Firefighter Stuff Too

Cost is $40 per teen. This includes lunches and a T-Shirt. ...As my Uncle Murray would say "What a Bargain"...I don't really have an Uncle Murray, but if I did, that's what he would say!

Session are limited to 20 students each session. The Session Dates are:

July 7th - 11th

July 21st - 25th

August 4th - 8th

Sessions run from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM each day. The student meet at 8:00 AM each morning at the Police Department Community Room.

If you are interested, print & complete this form and return it to us here at SCPD.

For more information you can contact our amazing Officer Joe Hernandez at (831) 420-5952 or email him at jhernandez@cityofsantacruz.com

It is so good to have the staffing to bring back our Neighborhood Enforcement Team. The team is making an impact and paying dividends with their hard work!

On Friday last week our team was back at it. This time conducting a drug sales sting. Their efforts resulted in the arrest of six people for selling methamphetamine to undercover officers.

Here is what we did:

Posing as buyers, our officers focused on the Harvey West area and the top of Ocean Street. Officers purchased various quantities of methamphetamine from street level sellers in these areas. Sometime after the deal was done, arrest teams swooped in and arrested the sellers.

Here are the arrestees:

Kevin Jones, 42 years – County resident, a felony probationer. Mr Jones sold us methamphetamine at Harvey West Park

Kathryn Gibbons, 32 years – Transient, a state parolee and felony probationer. Ms. Gibbons sold us methamphetamine at Grant Street Park

Paul Ensminger, 49 years – County resident. Mr. Ensminger both conspired and sold us an amount of methamphetamine in the area of the 200blk of Coral Street

Anthony Rodriguez, 52 years – Santa Cruz resident. Mr. Rodriguez both conspired and sold an amount of methamphetamine in the area of the 200blk of Coral Street

John Burke, 55 years – Santa Cruz resident. Mr. Burke both conspired and sold an amount of methamphetamine at Harvey West Park

James Beck, 45 years – Santa Cruz resident, a felony probationer, both conspired and sold an amount of methamphetamine at Harvey West Park

Note to Drug Sellers........Our Neighborhood Enforcement Team will be back!!!

Over the past week, our patrol teams have taken two guns off the streets from gangsters.

The first case involved our Neighborhood Enforcement Team tracking down a suspect with a felony drug warrant. The suspect, Andrew Villa was found in an apartment in the 300 block of Cliff Street. After taking him into custody, a search of his belongings discovered this unregistered .22 caliber revolver.

Mr. Villa was booked into jail for his warrant, being a felon in possession of a firearm, as well as the enhancement for being involved in a criminal street gang. Here is his booking photo

Mr. Villa is a Sureno gang member. Mr. Villa is a 19 year old Santa Cruz resident.

In the second case, our officer spotted a known Sureno gang member and gang associate near Ocean and Broadway. Our officer knew the gangster, Mr. Jonathan Luis and also knew he had an outstanding warrant for his arrest.

Our officer contacted Mr. Luis and his juvenile associate. Mr. Luis was arrested for his warrant.

Mr. Luis is an 18 year old Santa Cruz resident.

The young Padawan (on his way to being a full-fledged, card-carrying gangster) was contacted for what we call a “Field Interview”. That’s where we document who they are, tattoos, gang clothing, associates, etc.

Thankfully, our officer searched the juvenile because in his waistband was this loaded .22 caliber revolver with the serial number removed.

Once we discovered the gun, the fight was on. Our officer successfully restrained the suspect and removed the firearm.

We won’t identify him, because he is a 15 year old juvenile, but rest assured his conduct is every bit as concerning as any adult. The juvenile was booked into Juvenile Hall for being in possession of a loaded firearm, as well as being in possession of a firearm that has the serial numbers removed. The juvenile is a 15 year old Watsonville resident.

Once again, great intuition and follow through by our patrol teams; taking dangerous people and weapons off the streets.

Santa Cruz Police Department Detectives made an arrest in a gang-related stabbing that occurred on August 17^th at approximately 10:55 PM. The stabbing took place at an apartment complex in the 100 block of Sycamore St.

Our patrol officers were first notified of this stabbing when the victim arrived at the Dominican Hospital Emergency Room. The victim is a 23 year old Santa Cruz resident. He walked into the Emergency room under his own power and reported the stabbing to hospital staff. The wound was substantial and life threatening. The victim was immediately taken into surgery and is recovering.

With limited information, our officers were able to locate the crime scene. Detectives were called in to assist in the investigation and have been working on the case since.

Investigators followed up on leads and were able to identify the suspect as:

Anselmo Castillo – 23 years, Watsonville resident

Mr. Castillo is also a Watsonville "Norteno" gang member.

Detectives were able to obtain an arrest warrant for Mr. Castillo charging him with Assault with a Deadly Weapon and a Criminal Street Gang Enhancement.

Detectives stayed hot on the trail. On August 20^that approximately 4:30 PM they tracked Mr. Castillo to a home on Linden Rd in Watsonville. Mr. Castillo surrendered without incident and was taken into custody.

Fantastic work by the initial responding patrol team, and great follow up by the Investigation team to identify and track down our suspect.

Welcome Officer Scott Freeman

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