OXNARD : Police Arrest 12 in Sweep Against Gangs

Using an increasingly common tactic in the fight against gangs, a police task force on Tuesday swooped down on 45 Oxnard homes, arresting 12 people and putting others on notice that future gang-related crime could draw harsher penalties, authorities said.

The early morning raid, the fourth of its kind in Oxnard, involved 70 officers and was one of the largest such operations staged in Ventura County. Similar raids have taken place this year in Fillmore, Thousand Oaks and El Rio, police said.

All but one of the youths targeted in Tuesday’s operation had agreed to random searches as a condition of probation, officials said.

Compared to earlier raids, police seized little in contraband and weapons--one loaded handgun, an air pistol and about two ounces of marijuana. But they did confiscate dozens of notebooks, mirrors and T-shirts with gang-style writing.

The 10 juveniles arrested, all between the ages of 14 and 17, were booked into Juvenile Hall on various violations of probation regarding gang activities. One youth was booked on an arrest warrant for auto theft, Oxnard Sgt. Charles Hookstra said.

Two adults, Jose Guzman and Jose Guadalupe Duran, both 19, also were arrested. Guzman was booked into Ventura County Jail on a traffic warrant and was being held in lieu of $372 bail. Duran was arrested on suspicion of violating probation and two drug charges and was being held in lieu of $50,000 bail.

During the sweep, police warned 23 individuals that gang-related crimes could result in up to two years being added to a jail sentence under the 1988 Street Terrorism Enforcement and Prevention Act.

Oxnard police, who organized the raids, were assisted by the Ventura, Santa Paula, Simi Valley and Port Hueneme police departments, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department and an agent from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms.