Ventura County Sheriff's Department

On 9-27-2010, at about 8:55 p.m. Ventura County Sheriff’s patrol deputies responded to a reported carjacking at Alelia Ave. and Azahar St. in the unincorporated area of Saticoy. When they arrived, they spoke with the victim, a male pizza delivery driver. The driver stated he was delivering a pizza to an address in the 1200 block of Alelia Ave. As he was taking the pizza out of the trunk of his car, he was assaulted by three unknown male Hispanics. The suspects fled in the victim’s car before sheriff’s deputies arrived. The victim’s car was later found crashed and abandoned about a mile away. Investigators collected evidence from the scene and submitted it to Ventura County Sheriff’s Regional Crime Lab.

On 9-30-2010, the investigation led to the identification of a 13 year old male gang member as a suspect in the crime. He was arrested for carjacking and street terrorism and lodged into juvenile hall. Over the next two days, gang investigators served five search warrants and arrested three additional suspects. They included 20 year old Sergio Alvarez, 19 year old Jose Puga, and 19 year old Isaac Burciaga. At the time, investigators did not have enough evidence to file charges with the District Attorney against Burciaga and he was released.

Over the next year and a half, Alvarez, Puga and the 13 year old male were convicted of robbery for the events of 09/27/2010. Puga was sentenced to two years in state prison, Alvarez was sentenced to three years, and the juvenile was committed to juvenile hall.

In March 2012, gang investigators were notified that Isaac Burciaga’s DNA was found on evidence collected from the victim’s abandoned vehicle. Based on the new information, investigators had enough evidence to charge Burciaga with carjacking. On 3-29-2012, investigators located Burciaga as he left a residence in Fillmore. He was arrested and booked for carjacking.

On 4-2-2012, the District Attorney’s Office filed multiple charges against Burciaga that include carjacking and robbery. He remains in custody at the Sheriff’s Pre-Trial Detention Facility in lieu of $155,000 bail.

Report Number:10-23648
Locations: Alelia Ave. & Azahar St., Saticoy
Date & Time: 9-27-2010 through 4-2-2012
Unit Responsible: Sheriff’s Gang Unit
(S)uspects, City of Residence Age
(S1) Burciaga, Isaac Saticoy, CA 19
Deputy Preparing Media Release: Sergeant Bill Schierman
Media Release Date: 4-5-2012
Follow-Up Contact: Sergeant Bill Schierman (805) 654-2856
Approved by: Captain Patti Salas, WCPS, Headquarters

Ventura County Sheriff's Department

A 43-year-old woman and a 45-year-old man suffered serious stab wounds during a possible domestic dispute inside their Fillmore residence Friday at 3pm, 1100 block Los Serenos Drive.

Maria de Los Angeles Rangel was pronounced dead at the scene of multiple stab wounds, and the man, identified as her husband Tomas Perez, was transported to Ventura County Medical Center in Ventura, where he underwent surgery for stab wounds. The couple was found by one of their daughters, who came to the residence and discovered them both in a bedroom. She called 9-1-1.

Authorities said Friday that the incident appeared to be domestic violence and that there were no outstanding suspects.

Investigators remained on scene for several hours.

Donation car wash this Saturday 8am, April 7, @ Jiffy Lube in Fillmore, all proceeds go to the children of Maria de Los Angeles Rangel, Art Tellez 24 Brianna Tellez 19, Vanessa Perez 15, Cynthia Perez 13, and Tommy Perez 8.

All inclusive enchilada dinner, desert, and 12oz drink @ La Fondita, will be held Friday April 13 from 5-8 pm.

For tickets, questions, or detailed information regarding fundraisers contact Art or Alle at 805-914-9873.

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Tuesday night’s Fillmore Unified School Board Meeting (FUSD) focused on Transitional Kindergarten, the English Language Learners (ELL) Pacing Guide Task Force and changes to Advanced Placement class requirements.

This fall FUSD is implementing a two year program called Transitional Kindergarten (TK) for children whose 5th birthday falls between September 2nd and December 2nd.. What this means is students who attend a TK class will have a year of preparation before attending kindergarten in the 2013-2014 school year. Those students’ whose birthdays qualify them for TK, along with those who have not had any preschool, will be scheduled for a basic school readiness screening and the results will be discussed with the parents.

Not all FUSD elementary schools will be providing TK. For those children whose home school does not provide TK an exception is made allowing them to enroll in a school that will offer TK; transportation will not be provided and once they start kindergarten they must enroll in their home school.

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Ventura County Sheriff's Department

On March 26, Chief Randy Pentis officially began his first day on the job for the City of Thousand Oaks. Pentis succeeded Jeff Matson as Chief of the Thousand Oaks Police Department.

Pentis grew up in Newbury Park and attended Conejo Valley schools. He’s spent most of his 30-year career in the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department serving the citizens of Thousand Oaks in patrol, investigations, and special enforcement.

“I’m very happy to be home,” said Pentis. As Pentis reflects on his past, he also looks to the future, “Going from Patrol in Newbury Park during the mid-1980’s, to becoming police chief, is a very humbling experience.

I’m honored for this opportunity and excited to get to work.” Pentis will focus the department on maintaining Thousand Oaks’ historically low crime rate and its standing as one of the safest cities in America.

He also intends to partner with Conejo Valley Unified School District on a variety of initiatives.

Proclamation well earned. Jack Stethem, left, and Victor Gongora receive a city Proclamation from Mayor Gayle Washburn on behalf of the Fillmore Lions Club for Non-Profit Organization of the Year, at Tuesday night’s council meeting.
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It was standing room only as the March 27, 2012 Fillmore City Council meeting began. Most of those in attendance came to voice their concerns over the continued operation of the Aquatics Center or were recipients of the 10 proclamations for various awards of the year. The main items on the agenda were the Midyear Budget Review and Adoption, along with the City declaring a state of fiscal emergency.

Finance Director Glenda Jay gave a thorough report of the City finances, starting with a graph depicting three years of deficit spending and continuing the presentation with more projections of future unmet expenditures. The 2011/12 General Fund saw revenue of $5 million and expenditures of $6 million, with 2012/13 expected revenue $4.7 million and expenditures $6.2 million. The expected deficit by 2013 is $1.5 million.

The bottom line is that Fillmore’s General Fund does not have sufficient revenue to support basic public safety services and further reduction in law enforcement is possible along with more layoffs and creating part-time positions. Other possibilities are; closing park restrooms during the week, change in trash service at parks, contract services (janitorial/custodian), safety tree trimming, no code enforcement and no street repair.
The City is grappling with the question of how much can be cut and still provide a safe town to live in. A couple of years ago, Fillmore increased the paramedic stipend because the City was having a hard time getting enough paramedic to staff the fire trucks. In July, as part of the budget reductions, the stipend was reduced by $25 per shift. The City is considering decreasing the stipend another $25 per shift as part of the next round of budget cuts.

City Manager Yvonne Quiring does not recommended that the City consider reducing paramedic service. The County is proposing to relocate the paramedic out of the Fillmore Station (27) as part of its own budget cuts. Also when there is heavy call volume in the West County, AMR Ambulance is moved to Santa Paula. If Fillmore were to discontinue paramedic service, it would have a two fold impact--first the County won’t have a paramedic on staff and/or AMR may be based in Santa Paula. Often, since by law the City needs three fire fighters to respond to a fire for safety, the paramedic makes up the third position on the truck.

Two of the largest expenditures that rely on the General Fund are recreation and the community pool. The projected Recreation Fund will receive $37,790 less in revenue than originally budgeted. Rental from the parks and community center is down and the revenue from the sports programs is less than expected. The cumulative deficit on June 30, 2012 is estimated to be $75,376 and the ongoing deficit is projected $25,000 annually.
The pool is projected to end the fiscal year with an operating deficit of over $77,000 and a projected cumulative deficit as of June 30, 2012 of $232,263. Closing the pool for three months and the increased advertising and concession stand efforts have not been enough to cover the shortfall. Mayor Gayle Washburn told those in attendance, “We’re going to do our best not to close the pool, but I can’t make any promises. It’s something we have no control over…we may not have a choice.” Councilmember Jamey Brooks presented a motion that the pool not be closed for the next eight months, to which Council Members Eduardo Gonzalez, Brian Sipes voted Yes and Washburn the only No vote.

The Council wants to pursue having businesses take sponsorship of the pool and other projects/operations to help cover costs. A motion was passed authorizing the City to put the effort forward in finding sponsors. There was also talk of having a Volunteer Coordinator in a non-paid position to help with organizing volunteers for various positions no longer provided by City workers. Another idea was to pursue more grants. This would require a 501c3 nonprofit to apply for the grant and the City to partner up. Fillmore Police/Sheriff Chief Monica McGrath has done a great job of obtaining grants and received a $140,000 grant just two weeks ago.

Another area where revenue has declined is from the Redevelopment Agency (RDA) which has been eliminated and the City has become the Successor Agency due to state requirements. The RDA provided $864,000 to pay for General Fund services which the City will no longer receive.

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Get along little doggies! Cowgirls were riding the range at RailFest this past weekend. A good turnout on a beautiful Saturday. RailFest is put on by the Santa Clara River Valley Railroad Historical Society in cooperation with Fillmore & Western.
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Opening day, under cloudy skies, locals and busloads of people descended upon Fillmore for the 17 th annual Rail Fest hosted by the Santa Clara River Valley Railroad Historical Society in cooperation with the Fillmore & Western Railway.

Again... hundreds of people... young, old and everybody in between... came to ogle and marvel the star of the Festival... the magnificent #14 steam locomotive. She never disappoints. Rail fans with cameras of all kinds were in photographers heaven.

But wait... there's more! Those fortunate enough to secure a ticket were treated to a rare experience. Hop aboard... take your seat in an enclosed car... or the open-air car... and hold on as #14 hauls the train east out to the Fish Hatchery Road. After a brief pause... she shudders... belches a cloud of smoke... and begins the return trip. After going through the infamous “tunnel” just west of Highway 126, the train stops. Everybody with a camera... and others who simply desire to witness the pending exciting event... disembark. The engineer puts #14 in reverse to go back through the tunnel. After a brief pause... letting the suspense build... #14 begins her re-run through the tunnel. Rails shivering under her powerful driving wheels... she emerges with a dense plume of smoke and blasts from her mighty steam whistle. A classic Kodak moment with a thrill remembered forever. As she whizzes by the throng of people enthralled with her performance... observant types swear that they saw the proud #14 grinning with glee. Pssst... it's true! Thereafter... passengers climb back aboard the train for the return trip to the depot.

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