Welcome to Farm Watch
August – September 2011 Edition
Berry Farm Theft
• In late-August, a berry farm located on Gonzales Rd. in the unincorporated area of Oxnard was the victim of a grand theft. The farm had an expensive Pure Sense “Real-Time Irrigation Management” system stolen. Please refer to the attached flyer for details.
Farm House Burglary
• In late-August, a farm house on Heatherton Drive in Somis was burglarized. The suspect(s) broke windows to the victims’ work shed, garage, and storage shed and stole various tools including a “Craftsman” chainsaw, a weed whacker, and gardening tools. They also stole two saddles.
Fertilizer Theft
• In late-August, a berry farm located on Hueneme Rd. in the unincorporated area of Oxnard was the victim of a grand theft. The farm had eight (8) pallets of fertilizer stolen from an open storage yard. The loss was estimated at $15,000.
Fuel Theft
• In early-September, an avocado grower located on Berylwood Rd. in Somis was the victim of a petty theft. The suspect(s) cut a lock securing a perimeter fence and stole gasoline from the ranch fuel supply tank.
Fumigant Theft
• In early-September, a local agricultural product supply house, Crop Production Services, were the victim of a grand theft. The suspect(s) cut openings in the perimeter chain link fence and gained access to an open storage area. The suspect(s) used an unknown type of cart to haul away numerous metal fumigant canisters. The loss is estimated at $12,000. See attached flyer for details.
Generator Theft
• In early-September, a farm located on South Largo Lane in Fillmore was the victim of a petty theft. The farmer had a portable Honda generator stolen.
Fertilizer Theft
• In late-September, a berry farm located on Wood Rd. in the unincorporated area of Oxnard was the victim of a grand theft. Suspect(s) used a heavy duty truck and gained access to the victims’ ranch via the neighbors’ property. The suspect(s) cut openings into a chain link enclosed storage area and stole a large amount of bagged fertilizer. Refer to the attached flyer for details.
As always, the Sheriff’s Office encourages you to take preventive measures to secure and protect your property including the use of high quality locks, security lighting, surveillance cameras, and marking your property with identifiable numbers.
In addition, please order only what you need and avoid stockpiling supplies because doing so will only make your operation more attractive to thieves. If you must keep large supplies on hand, please ensure that they are kept out of sight and in a secure facility.
Contacts:
Fillmore Detective Darin Hendren darin.hendrin@ventura.org or 524-2235
Ventura Detective Christine Rettura Christine.rettura@ventura.org 662-6770
Agricultural Crimes Detective, Ray Dominguez at Ray.Dominguez@ventura.org
Camarillo Detective Nora Soler, at Nora.soler@ventura.org
I would like to thank Sheriff’s Crime Analyst Karen Brown who puts together your maps and digests all the crime data along with Det. Ray Dominguez who assists tremendously with the crime summaries.
Be alert and always safe!