LAPD’s Topanga Station SLO Issues Tips For Dealing With Tagging/Graffiti
LAPD’s Topanga Station Senior Lead Officer Dennis Cunningham sent out some helpful tips for dealing with graffiti earlier this week. Personally, I believe the solution to graffiti should be a vicious dog or a lead pipe, but LAPD and the City of Los Angeles’ solution involves prompt removal. Go figure.
LAPD writes:
Taggers come from all walks of life. No community is immune to the effects of graffiti. The presence of Graffiti degrades our communities and empowers the criminal element. Graffiti in the form of Tagging if unchecked only breeds more Tagging.
For more information on Graffiti and Graffiti removal contact your area Senior Lead Office at 818-756-3070.
The most important tool in combating Graffiti is the removal of graffiti. The City of Los Angeles operates a free graffiti removal service. If you observe graffiti in your neighborhood simply call 311 and ask to be connected to the Graffiti Removal Service. You will be required to provide the location of the graffiti, the type of surface (cement, wood, plaster etc.) and the color of the surface.
The city also maintains a cash reward for information that leads to the arrest of individuals committing graffiti. “A reward of up to $1, 000 is offered to private persons who supply information resulting in the identification, apprehension and conviction or final adjudication of persons committing the crime of Graffiti Vandalism or Illegal Dumping (the act of graffiti or vandalism must have already occurred to be in progress”.
We stress the words “Information that leads to” not action that lead to. Stay smart and don’t jeopardize your safety. If you observe tagging in progress maintain a safe distance and call 911. Never attempt to apprehend someone.
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LAPD Ramming Home Their Warnings About Door To Door Salesmen
Not even a month has gone by since the last strong warning about these door to door salesmen and LAPD has already issued another stern warning to area residents. Note that in the notification they refer to “West Hills south of Ventura Blvd” – however, since no such place exists, I’m assuming they really mean Woodland Hills.
They write via Nixle:
Monday February 8, 2010 19:13 PM PST
Recent increase in burglaries in West Hills and south of Ventura Boulevard may be related to door to door salesmen.
LAPD Topanga Area has recently seen an increase in residential burglaries south of Ventura Blvd. At the same time, we have had numerous community complaints of aggressive door-to-door salespeople.
A common modus operandi for residential burglars is that they knock on the door of a house. If someone is home, they move on. If there is no one home, they go into the back yard, break into the house through a back door or window, enter, and steal at their leisure. The burglars are often seen by neighbors, often as they are removing property. The neighbors often think that there is something strange going on, but do not report it to the police. Later, when the police canvass the neighborhood for witnesses, a neighbor is located who can give a good description of the suspects.
Last month, a Winnetka woman was viciously attacked inside her own home by a door-to-door salesman when she opened her door to him. Even though he was located and arrested by LAPD Topanga officers later that same day, both the police and the community were shocked by the crime. The assailant was discovered to be associated with a magazine sales “crew,” consisting of mostly out-of-state “salespeople” put up at a local motel and sent out every day to various neighborhoods to sell subscriptions. The assailant had an extensive criminal history and officers learned that there is little or no screening process for these people.
What can YOU do to protect yourself and your family?
If someone comes to your door and you don’t know them, DO NOT ANSWER THE DOOR. You should yell through the door and tell them to leave. That way they know someone is at home and will probably just leave. If they don’t leave, call the police, they may be dangerous. If you can see the person through a window, write down a description of him/her and a description of any vehicle associated with the person(s) and put it in a safe place, just in case later the police come to your door and ask about persons knocking on your door. If the person(s) appears suspicious (looking around, entering a neighbor’s back yard, etc.), immediately call your local police station and report the incident, preferably while the suspect(s) is still in the neighborhood.
What are your local police doing to protect you?
We have sent officers out to the motels where these sales groups typically stay to identify the salespeople. We are stepping up patrols in the affected neighborhoods and overall, we are getting the word out about how people can protect themselves. Please pass this information on to your neighbors, family and friends.
Be safe.
You should also read this excerpt from Topanga Station’s February newsletter:
The next time you see SLO Cunningham, make sure you give him extra kudos for a recent outstanding arrest that perhaps you may have read about in the L.A. Times. For those of you who are not aware, on December 17, 2009, Officer Cunningham arrested a door to door salesman who had robbed and attempted to rape a woman.
In the past, there had been several burglaries which Cunningham being in-tune with his area SLO that he is, knew of. While patrolling his area, Officer Cunningham conducted a pedestrian stop on two males who identified themselves as “Door-to-Door Magazine Solicitors.” The next day (12/17/09) he responded to a “Hot Prowl, Attempt Attack, and Robbery Home Invasion.” Based on his prior contact with the salesmen he conducted a follow-up investigation. Thanks to Cunningham’s great investigative skills, a male suspect was taken into custody. With two witness field show ups and a victim’s field show-up, all were positive the suspect was the one who carried out the attack.
The suspect was arrested for home invasion robbery and attempt rape. His bail was set at $5.6 million dollar bail for burglary, home invasion robbery, attempt rape and kidnapping, to name a few. Officer Cunningham, thank you for taking this BAD person off our streets!!
Download the entire newsletter from LAPD’s site by following this link.
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“ATM Skimmers” In Woodland Hills? Watch Out, Folks!
ATM Skimmer from CitiBank In Woodland Hills
I came across this interesting blog during a google search the other day, and it’s a little bit frightening! Apparently they make devices that slip over the card slot of ATM card readers to grab your card numbers and even use digtal cameras to get you entering your pin code.
Pictured below is what’s known as a skimmer, or a device made to be affixed to the mouth of an ATM and secretly swipe credit and debit card information when bank customers slip their cards into the machines to pull out money. Skimmers have been around for years, of course, but thieves are constantly improving them, and the device pictured below is a perfect example of that evolution.
This particular skimmer was found Dec. 6, 2009, attached to the front of a Citibank ATM in Woodland Hills, Calif. Would you have been able to spot this?
See the full article for more details and more pictures.
Seems like this story was picked up by about 1,000 security blogs and spam sites, but this quote seems to give a little more news oriented background. Just a little.
On December 6, 2009, a customer was using the Citibank ATM located at 22000 Ventura Bl, Woodland Hills, CA 91364. He discovered a skimmer on the machine that he was using. He also observed a second skimmer on the machine next to him. The customer called the police and the skimmers were recovered. It should be noted that the skimmer was designed to fit over the existing card slot and contained the card reader and the camera in one device.
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LAPD Topanga Station Issues Holiday Shopping Crime Prevention Tips
Some helpful tips from LAPD’s E-Policing Newsletter:
Some helpful tips for the Holiday Shopping Season.
#1 When making large purchases take them home instead of leaving them in your car. Many thieves prowl the parking lots looking for victims who drop off heavy packages in their cars to continue shopping.
#2 Protect your purses. Never leave your purse unattended in a shopping cart or in a dressing room. Thieves will take every opportunity to steal your purse. Always maintain physical control of your purse, wearing it if possible.
#3 Protect your credit card numbers. Shopping Mall’s fall victim to teams of Conmen and Women who use every conceivable method to obtain your credit card numbers. Once these numbers are obtained they charge your accounts to maximum levels.
#4 A favorite Holiday gift to give and receive are Gift Cards. Thieves also target the mail in search of envelopes containing these gift cards. Community members without secured mailboxes should be aware of their mail drop off time and ensure that it is picked up as soon after delivery as possible. Many community members are at work during these drop off times. It is the perfect time for the neighborhood to keep an eye out for one another. Report mail theft to Topanga Station and attempt to obtain the suspects license plate numbers.
#5 A recent trend in the San Fernando Valley has been the “UPS” follow home thefts. Suspects have been following UPS/FED EX/ USPS trucks dropping off packages in the neighborhoods. These thieves will watch a package being dropped off and left at the door. If the package is not immediately picked up, the Thief will steal the package and its contents. With the Holiday Season coming closer we can expect that this crime trend will continue. Again, this is a very good time for neighbors to look out for each other. Consider delivering the package with a requirement that the receiver must sign for it. This is of course an inconvenience but not as big an inconvenience as never receiving the package.
The Key to a safe Holiday is to always be vigilant. Report crimes to the Police and look out for your neighbor. For more information contact your area Senior Lead Office, or attend a neighborhood Watch meeting.
Officer Dennis Cunningham Senior Lead Officer, Topanga Division/LAPD818-756-3070
Hopefully we can all stay safe and not be victimized this holiday season!
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Catching Up On My E-Policing Tips from LAPD
Did you know the LAPD has a ’service’ called E-Policing? Essentially it’s a community targeted crime & policing notification and news system. You simply sign up for it on their website and the LAPD will send tips, newsletters, and other important information directly to you.
Their words:
E-Policing is our way of bringing community policing to the Internet. The E-Policing program enables Senior Lead Officers, Area Captains, and detectives to e-mail newsletters, crime trends and other important information to you.
On November 11th they wrote:
Residents who park their vehicles outside of their garages should always remember to take their garage door openers with them. We have seen on multiple occasions suspects breaking into vehicles for the purpose of obtaining the garage door opener. The suspects enter the garage and remove the victims tools and other valubles.
An additional consideration is to always ensure that the interior door from your house to the garage is locked and secured. Pet doors into your home also offer an easy way for would be burglars to enter your home. Always remember to make your home as safe and secure as possible.
For additional safety tips and current crime trends in your community contact your Senior Lead Officers and find out how you can get involved in the Neighborhood Watch Program.
Senior Lead Officer Dennis Cunningham #34966 Topanga Area, 818-756-3070
Good, free advice from the LAPD.
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