In response to a rash of recent residential burglaries, the Signal Hill Police Department (SHPD) is encouraging residents to “call the police” regarding suspicious individuals in their local neighborhoods.
Police Chief Michael Langston said a burglary suspect will typically knock on a door to see if someone is home, and then, if a resident answers, pretend to look for someone who might live there or solicit for work.
“We want our residents to call us if they have someone engaged in these activities in their neighborhood,” Langston said. “We will determine if the individuals are engaged in legal or illegal activities. Having someone call is the key to this issue as officers unfortunately cannot be posted on every corner.”
Langston said residents know better than anyone who belongs in their neighborhoods. “When neighbors start looking out for each other, the security of the neighborhood is increased exponentially,” he said. “In one neighborhood, a residential burglary was thwarted just two weeks after residents started a Neighborhood Watch group. A resident called police when he saw some subjects near his neighbor’s house that he did not recognize. Officers responded and arrested the subjects as they were leaving the neighbor’s house after burglarizing it.”
According to the SHPD, the department will help residents get a Neighborhood Watch group started upon request, and officers have increased patrols in residential neighborhoods while investigators are utilizing automated license-plate reader technology to assist in identifying suspects.
According to SHPD Lt. Ron Sagmit, while violent crimes have dropped significantly in Signal Hill after spiking in 2012, property crimes have slowly risen since 2011 after the implementation of prison realignment.
“We have seen an increase in every property-crime category, and the total number of arrests has risen,” Sagmit said. “We have arrested individuals for burglary, only to catch them a few weeks later committing the same crimes. When suspects opt to plead guilty and serve time rather than take advantage of counseling, treatment or probation, there is something wrong with the criminal justice system. They know they are not going to serve significant time in county jail. There just isn’t room in county jail.”
The SHPD can be reached at (562) 989-7200.
Source: SHPD
