2 Teens Arrested in Latest Simi Valley Gang Sweep

Two teenagers were arrested early Wednesday morning in a sweep of nine Simi Valley locations by police.

The raid, which included county probation officers, was the ninth in a series aimed at purging Simi Valley of gang violence.

“As long as we do this it keeps them off guard,” Sgt. Gary Collins said. “It makes it hard for them to get ahold of a neighborhood and terrorize it.”

One 17-year-old boy was arrested for graffiti vandalism, estimated in excess of $1,000. Another 17-year-old boy was arrested for possession of marijuana and tagger paraphernalia, likely a spray can, according to Collins. The second teen also carried a handgun, a knife and a slingshot, all in violation of his probation terms. Police filed probation-violation charges against both youths.

In addition, a 19-year-old woman, whom police did not identify, and two juveniles--a 16-year-old boy and a 17-year-old girl--were found in possession of drugs, stolen property and gang paraphernalia. All three face possible criminal charges and may be in violation of their probation.

Simi Valley’s gangs are tame by Los Angeles standards--most of them engage mostly in graffiti and minor drug use, Collins said. But there are two home-grown gangs--the West Side Locos and the Varrios Simi Valley--a name that Collins said was a misspelling of barrios, the Spanish word for “neighborhoods.”

Collins said the frequent sweeps are meant to be a preventive measure. The number of arrests has declined with each raid, which he called a tribute to their effectiveness.

“We don’t want to be like L.A.,” Collins said. “We have the manpower and the will to do this--so we do.”