Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2008

Year of silence on gang violence

Although no deaths, Sheriff's Department says problem persists

It's been one year without a gang-related homicide for the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department, the agency announced Tuesday.

That's not to say gangs are no longer a problem. Quite the contrary, said deputy Royjindar Singh, sheriff's spokesman. From January through March, the most recent data available, the department responded to 34 gang-related shootings that left nine people injured.

After methamphetamine use, Singh said, gangs are the county's second-largest public safety problem.

"It's countywide. It's everywhere," he said. "And it's not just Hispanic gangs. There are Asian gangs, black gangs, outlaw motorcycle gangs. And they're getting younger."

A man who died last August after being shot at a Crows Landing Road taco truck was the most recent gang-related homicide victim for the Sheriff's Department.

Despite the county's continued problem with gangs, Singh said, the situation seems to have improved. He credited higher staffing levels and more deputies on its gang unit, the Special Team Investigating Narcotics and Gangs, with the marked lack of gang-related deaths.

The unit works closely with the Modesto police Street Crimes Unit and the Central Valley Gang Impact Task Force.

"We've been able to prevent a lot of retaliation because we're a continuous presence in the streets," Singh said. "That's what the sheriff has committed to the community."

He added that the public has been more willing to submit tips about gang-related crimes.

The department's record is impressive, but at least twice this year geography worked in the agency's favor. In April, gunfire between rival gangs resulted in a Cambodian man shot on Haron Way and Chicago Avenue in west Modesto. If the man had been shot on the other side of the street, the Sheriff's Department would have caught the case.

Two weeks later, the same night a 22-month-old boy became the victim of a stray bullet on H Street just west of downtown Modesto, a teenager was shot and killed in a gang-related incident on Rock Pine Court in west Modesto. Had the shooting taken place a block west, the case would have fallen to the Sheriff's Department.

The last gang-related shooting death for the Sheriff's Department was Aug. 19, 2007, when Kevin Argueta was confronted by men at a taco truck on Crows Landing Road. The men asked Argueta what gang he belonged to, Singh said, and then shot him. The Sheriff's Department said the 22-year-old was not a gang member. He was pronounced dead two days later after being taken off life support.

Investigators arrested three men in connection with the killing. They remain in custody pending trial.

The Sheriff's Department asks anyone with information about Argueta's death to call Detective Ken Hedrick at 525-7083 or Crime Stoppers at 521-4636. Tipsters can e-mail tips via www.modestopolice.com/CrimeStoppers, or text them to CRIMES (274637) by typing "Tip704" plus the message. Tipsters can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a cash reward.

Bee staff writer Emilie Raguso can be reached at eraguso@modbee.com or 578-2235.