Sheriff's office warns North Valleys residents about rising vehicle burglaries and DUIs

Sergeant Sarwin of the Washington County Sheriff’s Office briefed the North Valleys Citizens Advisory Board on recent public-safety trends and urged residents to secure vehicles and report suspicious activity.

Sarwin said the police have seen an increase in vehicle burglaries and DUI incidents in the area. “One of the major contributing factors…is people leaving valuable items in plain view in their cars,” Sarwin said, urging residents to remove visible valuables from vehicles. He described offenders who “scope” parked cars during warm nights and then test door handles or break windows when they see items of value.

On DUI enforcement, Sarwin asked residents to call nonemergency dispatch with vehicle descriptions and suspected direction of travel when they observe a possible impaired driver. He said deputies will attempt to locate reported vehicles and will share information with other agencies; he explained “ATL” stands for “attempt to locate.” He noted that some arrests are forwarded to sister agencies and that interagency coordination helps remove problem drivers from the community.

Sarwin described other enforcement observations: the North Patrol is seeing drug trafficking along travel corridors, including high-volume movements of marijuana and occurrences of fentanyl and methamphetamine. He said staffing choices aim to put experienced deputies “hunting” in the area and that reported suspicious vehicles or activity generates investigative follow-up.

During the Q&A a resident asked for clarification of ATL; Sarwin reiterated that an ATL is an attempt to locate a vehicle description shared with neighboring agencies. He also identified Deputy Devin Clark as an especially active patrol deputy in the area.

The CAB did not take any formal enforcement actions; the briefing was informational and included a community request that residents call nonemergency dispatch with suspicious activity and vehicle descriptions.