Putting Deputy at Outlet Mall May Be a Bargain

Business is booming, at least for cops, at the Camarillo outlet mall.

The police scanner has been abuzz recently about burglaries, petty thefts and fraudulent checks at the mall, prompting authorities to take a closer look at how to better protect shopkeepers.

“The outlet center does tap our resources,” said Ventura County Sheriff’s Cmdr. David Tennessen. “We are conducting a study to find out how much time and money we are spending responding to calls for service.”

Results of the research could decide whether a full-time deputy should be assigned to patrol only the Camarillo Premium Outlets and the nearby Camarillo Town Center.

Statistics show there were 159 commercial burglaries in the city in 1999 and more than a third occurred at the outlet mall and the town center, Tennessen said.

Of 409 petty thefts reported citywide last year, 48 were at the outlet mall and town center, which make up a single crime reporting area.

The number of fraud cases at those locations wasn’t available, but authorities say scams occur regularly at both sites.

Most crooks getting caught at these malls are from out of town.

There were 124 arrests at the two plazas last year and more than 60% of the suspects live outside Ventura County.

Bicycle patrols have been added and authorities regularly issue fliers to shopkeepers warning about crime trends.

Deputies also have taught store employees how to administer fingerprinting on personal checks.

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Unlike fine wine, some things don’t get better with age.

Take gang crime.

Experts say members of old, established gangs repeatedly commit crimes and are regularly busted because it’s a lifestyle that has existed for decades, sometimes having been passed from grandfather to father to son.

This is not always the case, though, in cities where gangs have formed during the last decade. Detectives say members of new gangs are often younger and more easily deterred from crime when they see their friends getting caught.

Such is the case in Thousand Oaks, where despite recent reports of brazen gang violence, including murder, gang membership and gang crime has stayed steady or dropped over the years, according to Sheriff’s Sgt. Mike De Los Santos.

“They are not your inner-city types who have seen things going on from generation to generation,” the detective said. “We have gang members from all types of backgrounds--some whose families live in million-dollar homes--and they are younger and not as hard-core as the veterans.”

Some statistics appear to support that argument.

Since 1991, there have been three gang-related homicides in Thousand Oaks. Of about 300 known gang members in the city, only 100 are considered active. They belong to one of the city’s two established gangs.

In 1998, deputies had contact with gang members 1,387 times to warn them, write tickets or just chat. That number was 1,068 last year. In 1998, 214 adult and juvenile gang members were arrested compared with 141 last year.

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Today marks the start of National Police Week and it’s also National Police Memorial Day, a time to remember officers who died in the line of duty.

Events to recognize fallen officers are planned throughout the country, including one Tuesday at Oxnard City Hall that promises to be a fitting salute to seven Oxnard police officers who died between 1906 and 1996.

The event is expected to be attended by the families of the slain officers and is scheduled to include speeches by the city’s top brass.

The department’s honor guard will present a memorial wreath, and Assistant Chief John Crombach will do a roll call of the fallen officers. Renditions of “Amazing Grace” and “Taps” and a 21-gun salute are on the agenda.

Holly J. Wolcott can be reached at 653-7581 or at holly.wolcott@latimes.com.