Local Gang Operation Deemed Successful In The Antelope Valley

LASD - Palmdale Station, Los Angeles County Sheriff

Tuesday June 17th, 2014 :: 04:36 p.m. PDT

Community

Local Gang Operation Deemed Successful In The Antelope Valley

On Tuesday, June 17, 2014, teams from all over Los Angeles County served 13 simultaneous warrants in the City of Palmdale. The focus of the operation were members of a local gang who have been assaulting, robbing and burglarizing not only residents, but local retailers by “flocking” stores, stealing items from cars and burglarizing homes. In all, nine arrests were made. At 7:00am, teams from the Palmdale, Lancaster and Santa Clarita Sheriff Stations, as well as teams from Parole Compliance, Narcotics and Safe Streets Bureau served the warrants. Lieutenant Larry Gregg of the Antelope Valley Crime Fighting Initiatives (AVCFI) said, “Nearly 120 personnel from various stations and teams were involved in this operation.” Also present were members of the Probation Department and the Department of Child and Family Services (DCFS) MART team. Lieutenant Gregg described the operation as “necessary, as these juveniles have been on a crime spree for some time. They have committed robberies in the local park, burglarized cars and home, sometimes while the residents were sleeping.” He said local businesses were also targeted through “flocking.” He described “flocking” - as in mass, creating distractions, as others steal items. He said those arrested today had used personal media to not only film the crimes, but were “bold enough to then put out the videos through social media websites.” Palmdale detectives have been actively investigating a series of crimes conducted by these individuals for several months. The vast majority of these suspects were juveniles, many with previous arrest records for assault and theft related crimes. This search warrant operation was “only the beginning” according to Gregg, who said “future operations are being planned.” Six juveniles were arrested during this operation; all for assault. Adults arrested were: Ryan Vigil/ Male /19 year-old / Arrested for Burglary James Span / Male /18 year- old / Arrested for Assault Melodie Gray / Female /34 year-old / Arrested for a Parole violation Numerous suspected pieces of stolen property were also recovered, as was a gun from one of the warrant locations. One suspect sought during this operation is still outstanding and is being pursued by detectives from Palmdale Station. LA Crime Stoppers: Partner to prevent or report crime by contacting your local Sheriff’s station. Or if you wish to remain Anonymous, call “LA Crime Stoppers” by dialing 800-222-TIPS (8477), texting the letters TIPLA plus your tip to CRIMES (274637), or using the website http://lacrimestoppers.org Prepared by: Deputy Jodi Wolfe Palmdale Sheriff’s Station 750 East Avenue Q, Palmdale, Ca. 93550 (661) 272-2520 Email: jewolfe@lasd.org Website: www.Palmdale.lasd.org Twitter: @jwLASD Facebook.com/Deputy Wolfe

Address/Location LASD - Palmdale Station, Los Angeles County Sheriff 750 East Avenue Q Palmdale, CA 93550

Contact Emergency: 9-1-1 Non-emergencies: 661-272-2400Local Gang Operation Deemed Successful In The Antelope Valley