Agencies Plan Crackdown on Crime at Shopping Center

Several city agencies plan to crack down on crime and blight at a shopping center long plagued by the sale of fake documents and drugs, officials said Wednesday.

The Los Angeles Police Department, the city attorney’s office and the city building and safety department will target Glen Square, a strip mall at Sherman Way and Variel Avenue, said Deputy City Atty. Jason Dominguez.

The process will start with a review of all police arrests during the last two years in a three-block area encompassing the shopping center, Dominguez said. Authorities will target blight and drug sales, he said, adding that a citizen’s complaint prompted the probe.

Officials said they are also concerned that crime-fighting efforts in neighboring Winnetka may have pushed criminals into other parts of Canoga Park, including Glen Square. Since January, several city agencies have targeted a 10-block area in Winnetka as part of a nuisance abatement program and reduced various crimes by 20% to 45% in the first half of the year.

According to police and residents, Glen Square has long been a popular place for buying fake immigration green cards, Social Security cards, driver’s licenses and drugs in the west San Fernando Valley. In August, INS agents arrested four alleged counterfeit document vendors at the strip mall.