Sheriff's Office reports rise in calls, targeted enforcement on vehicle burglaries and scams; CARES campus logged 118 calls last month

Lieutenant Ted Seth of the Washoe County Sheriff's Office briefed the CAB on monthly crime statistics, trends and targeted enforcement operations in the southern portion of the county.

Seth reported the sheriff's office received 2,288 calls for service in the prior month, up from 2,021 the month before, and said traffic accidents rose to 148. He said a range of felony-level crimes such as aggravated assaults, burglaries, motor-vehicle thefts and simple assaults showed a downward trend, while DUI arrests, drug offenses and destruction-of-property incidents increased.

Seth described targeted enforcement in areas with recurring patterns: vehicle burglaries at trailheads and Thomas Creek, a theft series at Glen Creek Market that has since stopped, and a graffiti vandalism series at Little Walker Park for which the office has sought public tips. "A lot of those types of criminal activity are crimes of opportunity," Seth said, urging residents to avoid leaving valuables in plain view in vehicles.

CARES campus and calls for service In response to questions about the CARES campus, Seth said deputies responded to the site 118 times in the last month. He described many of these responses as trespass or nuisance calls where security asked individuals to leave rather than incidents that produced criminal charges. The sheriff's office also described a months-long targeted enforcement effort — a four-week saturation of the Fourth Street corridor — that led to arrests for warrants, stolen cars and drug offenses and that provided relief to businesses in that corridor.

Scams and solicitors Seth warned residents about telephone scams that impersonate law enforcement and about aggressive, out-of-state door-to-door solicitors who must display a valid business license. "If they do not have that, I would highly advise not to either product or engage in business with them," he said, and urged the public to verify business badges and contact the sheriff's office to report suspicious vendors.

Ending The sheriff's office will publish monthly scorecards with trend summaries; residents were told how to file service requests and report graffiti and suspicious activity on washersheriff.com.