Sheriff’s Office: Santa Cruz County sees uptick in stolen firearms

UPDATE 1/26/18 5:30PM
The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office (SCCSO) has seen an uptick of stolen firearms the past few years. Many of the thefts are coming from guns not being stored properly.

Not even a full month into the year and the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office said eight guns have been reported stolen so far in the unincorporated part of the county.

“It’s definitely an upward trend, we’re seeing these firearms are stored under beds or in closets, not in safes,” says Sgt. Brian Cleveland with SCCSO.

In 2015, 52 guns were reported stolen. In 2016, 60 guns were reported stolen in Santa Cruz County and 91 in 2017.

Sgt. Cleveland says storing guns properly doesn’t just prevent them from being stolen, “”It’s accessible not only to thief’s that break into your house, but unfortunately we see tragic incidents where kids get ahold of these firearms and hurt themselves and we don’t want these tragedies to happen, we want to get these guns off of the street.”

One gun owner KION spoke with says they believe theft is up after because of Proposition 47. Under that proposition being in possession of a stolen firearm is now a misdemeanor rather than a felony.

The Sheriff’s Office says they are taking a few different approaches to get guns off of the streets or out of households where they are not wanted. Earlier this year the Sheriff’s Office partnered with other departments to get guns out of the hands of people who cannot legally have them.

“There’s an armed prohibited persons list that is accessible to State of California law enforcement officers, and in the middle of January the Sheriff’s Office combined with the Santa Cruz Police Department and Watsonville Police Department and DOJ went and did approximately 47 compliance checks and were able to make one arrest of somebody that was prohibited from possessing a firearm that was on that list,” said Sgt. Brian Cleveland.

They will also host a gun buy-back event that will be held on March 24th. One of the buy backs will be at the Sheriff’s Office in Soquel, and another at a location in the South County. SCCSO said during those buy backs no questions are asked and identification is not required.

“We’ve seen what damage one gun can do to a family or community let alone all the firearms that are not secure in people’s homes that they don’t want anymore, so this is something we’re looking forward to. We haven’t done it in many years and it will be a way for the Sheriff’s Office to connect with the community and get those guns back,” says Sgt. Cleveland.

For a shotgun or a rifle the office will pay you $50.00, for a handgun, $100.00 and up to $200.00 for any functioning assault rifle.

The Sheriff’s Office says they have only seen two homicides in the unincorporated parts of Santa Cruz County in the past five years. A big step to keep that number low is getting guns out of the wrong hands.

PREVIOUS STORY:

The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office (SCCSO) has seen an uptick of stolen firearms the past few years. Many of the thefts are coming from guns not being stored properly.

Not even a full month into the year and the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office said eight guns have been reported stolen so far in the unincorporated part of the county.

In 2015, 52 guns were reported stolen. In 2016, 60 guns were reported stolen in Santa Cruz County and 91 in 2017.

The Sheriff’s Office said properly storing guns in a safe place can be a huge preventative measure. Now they are taking a few different approaches to get guns off of the streets or out of households where they are not wanted.

Earlier this year the Sheriff’s Office partnered with other departments to get guns out of the hands of people who cannot legally have them.

“There’s an armed prohibited persons list that is accessible to State of California law enforcement officers, and in the middle of January the Sheriff’s Office combined with the Santa Cruz Police Department and Watsonville Police Department and DOJ went and did approximately 47 compliance checks and were able to make one arrest of somebody that was prohibited from possessing a firearm that was on that list,” said Sgt. Brian Cleveland.

They will also host a gun buy-back event that will be held in March. SCCSO said during those buy backs no questions are asked and identification is not required.

KION’s Ashley Keehn has the full story at 6 p.m.