Crimes heat up watch efforts
La Cañada resident R.C. Drake’s Indiana Avenue home is outfitted with two security alarms and 24 cameras, but when it comes to preventing residential burglaries, there’s only one thing on which he ultimately relies.
“You can have all the alarms and all the cameras in the world, but your best defense is going to be your neighbor,” Drake said.
That thinking inspired him to form a neighborhood watch group for his street and nearby Curran Avenue about three years ago. Together, the group has worked with local businesses to raise awareness of safety issues and clean up the streets.
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FOR THE RECORD: The caption for this story incorrectly states the Sheriff’s vehicles were investigating a robbery. In fact, they were investigating a burglary.
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Public safety officials report a recent resurgence of interest in neighborhood watch groups as residents huddle to defend homesteads in the wake of a rash of residential burglaries.
Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy Erik Matejka, who leads the city’s neighborhood watch efforts, said there are 14 watch groups operating in La Cañada. He recently received two requests from residents hoping to form groups, and was asked to speak at an existing group that had recruited new members after a spate of recent crimes.
In December, the city saw 21 home burglaries, compared to just three in December 2013. While sheriff’s officials believe the increase may have been holiday related, break-ins have continued, with six occurring in La Cañada in January and seven reported so far this month, according to Sgt. Hector Mancinas, a detective with the Crescenta Valley Sheriff’s Station.
Nearby La Crescenta, which saw five residential burglaries in January, has had no break-ins yet this month, Mancinas reported.
Exactly why La Cañada seems to be an especially rich target is anybody’s guess, but homeowner Mary Smith says its proximity to freeways could be a draw to out-of-towners on the prowl.
“This area has been somewhat targeted, apparently, because of its easy access and ingress and egress with the freeways,” said Smith.
The Grand Avenue resident said several of her neighbors became alerted after sheriff’s deputies interrupted a Jan. 15 home burglary in progress at a nearby Fairview Drive home, which activated a manhunt that caused a one-hour lockdown of La Cañada Elementary School.
After that, Smith, who’s been a watch captain for years, convened with nearly 40 neighbors last week to learn more about what they could do to prevent a recurrence of that day’s events.
“It was mandatory that we do something,” she said of the meeting, at which Matejka spoke. “We’ve had about five residential burglaries since December, and with this increase, we just have to spread this information out.”
Matejka advises residents to do more than erect neighborhood watch signs to deter would-be criminals. Lock your doors and windows, keep precious objects away from view, he says, but most importantly, get to know your neighborhood.
“With all those eyes out there, they’ll know what belongs on their street,” Matejka added.
As for Drake, he keeps a phone list of neighbors and is sure to call when something looks amiss. Together, neighbors’ efforts have made a difference, he said.
“We’re really turning a corner here,” Drake said of the group. “It’s about being secure, and preventing crime before it happens.”
FYI
To learn more about forming a neighborhood watch group, contact Deputy Erik Matejka at the Crescenta Valley Sheriff’s Station at (818) 248-3464.
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Sara Cardine, sara.cardine@latimes.com
Twitter: @SaraCardine
