Extortion Patrols Hit Streets on Foot, Bikes : Crime: The police hope to chase off gang members who are shaking down street vendors in the Pico-Union district. But their job is complicated by the fear that the sellers, many illegal immigrants, have of authorities.

Crouched on a gritty stretch of sidewalk along 6th Street with dozens of Spanish-language music cassettes at his feet, a 34-year-old street vendor named Diego spoke with a voice full of fear--fear of both the gang members who regularly shake him down, and of the police officers who had just started patrolling this weekend to protect him from the gangs.

“They might be watching us right now,” he said nervously of the 18th Street gang members who on most Sundays collect $10 in protection money from him, out of the roughly $40 that he takes in daily.

But of the Los Angeles police officers who were patrolling the area Sunday, the Salvadoran immigrant had another equally anxious concern: “Are they going to take my tapes?”

Spurred by complaints of gang-orchestrated extortion schemes, officers from the Rampart Division began high-profile foot and bike patrols this weekend along 6th Street in the Pico-Union district, where recently arrived Central American immigrants illegally peddle everything from baby clothes to tangerines.

Some street vendors welcomed the officers’ presence and rejoiced that the gang members had been temporarily kept away. Others refused to talk to officers, and worried whether their arrival meant not just an end to the curbside bazaar, but perhaps even their presence in the United States.

Aware of the mistrust, police insisted that they were cracking down on the 18th Street gang members, not checking for immigration status or street vending permits.

“We’re trying to let these vendors know that we’re here for their protection,” said Sgt. Dennis Rosenberg, who heads the unit. “We’re trying to win their confidence. It is technically against the law to sell on the street, but we’re not enforcing that now. Whether they are here illegally or legally, we don’t care. These people are victims of the more serious crime of extortion.”

Enforcement of illegal street vending has been sporadic. The City Council approved a plan last January to legalize and regulate sidewalk sales in some parts of the city. But specific proposals have yet to emerge, and violators may still face penalties of up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.

Knowing that the vendors are hesitant to report incidents to police, gang members--using orange spray paint to designate makeshift sidewalk stalls so they can identify their targets--have created a protection racket to wrest hundreds of dollars a week from the vendors.

“If I don’t give them money, they take my stuff,” said one vendor, who pays $10 a week so he can sell his arts and crafts without harassment. “They control everything. They rent the spaces.”

A woman who sells baby clothes said that the gang members stole some of her merchandise when she refused to pay. Down the street, a food vendor said that instead of money, gang members just help themselves to her quesadillas.

The gang members have also tried their technique on the established merchants along the street, demanding protection money and grabbing merchandise.

“When they walked in here, I refused to give them money,” one shop owner said, her face red with anger. “They told me they’d burn (the store). So I gave them $5. I’m afraid. What can I do?”

Throughout the weekend, a handful of officers mingled along the sidewalk, peppering vendors with questions in English and Spanish about the neighborhood gangs and attempting to win their trust. In most cases, vendors remained distant, divulging little about what goes on when the officers are not around.

“Right now they’re not telling us much of anything,” said Officer Raymond Bergeron, who was assigned to the newly formed detail. “We’ve gotten a few reports, but nobody is telling us much. They’re scared of us. In their countries, the police are something you run from.”

Police said the weekend patrols will continue for as long as the problem does, or for as long as the department can afford it.

One vendor said she fears that as soon as police disappear, the gang members would be back. “Of course there aren’t any gang members around today,” she said. “They see the police. But as soon as the police are gone, they’ll come and collect.”