Sketch released of sexual assault suspect

ORO VALLEY, Ariz. (May 10, 2012) – On Monday, April 23, 2012 at approximately 12:15 a.m., an adult woman was both physically and sexually assaulted inside her apartment located in the 10000 block of N. La Cañada. The attacker forced open the victim’s door just after she had entered. The male suspect is described as a light-skinned Hispanic male in his mid-twenties. He is described as 5’10” in height with a medium build. He has dark hair, a short “buzz cut,” and had unshaven stubble on his chin and jaw. The suspect has a 1” to 2” inch puffy scar on the left side of his neck. No vehicle was seen or heard.

The public is urged to report anyone matching this description to the Oro Valley Police Department, attention Detective Mike Cruce at (520)-229-4963 or Detective Megan Carr (520)-229-4926 or 88-crime. After business hours, call (520)-229-4900.                                    

Neighborhood Safety

Are newspapers piling up on you neighbor’s driveway?  Are flyers accumulating on their front door?  Why not be a good neighbor and fight crime too by going over there and getting rid of that stuff for them?  Allowing it to pile up is like hanging a Thieves Welcome sign on the house.

You’ll be seeing more Oro Valley Police Department units hanging out in Sun City Oro Valley for a while.  They’ll be looking for speeders and other traffic scoff laws.  People have been complaining about speeders and other traffic violations in the community and the OVPD is responding.  Be careful out there!

SCAM WARNING

OVPD Sergeant Amy Graham informed us about another recent attempted scam in Oro Valley.  A person called a women claiming to be a relative.  The caller said that he needed money to deal with some kind of problem.  The women said the caller even used the name of one of her relatives and was very convincing.  Even so, she was suspicious and did not comply with the caller's request.

This type of thing seems to happen regularly, and the scammers are too often successful.  Most of it probably isn't reported to the police because the people who fall for this are often too embarrassed to admit their error.

If you get a call like this, follow the example of this women, and make sure you confirm the legitimacy of the call before you give away your money or property.  If you have the slightest doubt,

CALL 911.

Neighborhood Watch

The Posse may drive through your neighborhood once or twice a night; the police less often. You and your neighbors observe your neighborhood very often and should be the most aware of what is going on. This ability can be organized into effective crime prevention strategies that will benefit you and assist the Posse and police. It’s called Neighborhood Watch. The OVPD (Oro Valley Police Department) will help you organize a Neighborhood Watch Unit in your neighborhood. The SCOV neighborhood on N. Green Tree Drive already has. An Oro Valley Police Officer will meet with you and your neighbors so you can learn more about it. Call OVPD (520) 229-5080.

SAFETY & CRIME ALERT

(This reinforces what what has already been written in this website

about locking your vehicle and keeping valuables out of sight.)

From Oro Valley Police Department:

Date: December 5, 2011

Our neighborhood has been hit again.
 
A wallet and cell phone were taken from an unlocked car in the driveway.
 
Both wallets were found (without money but did have credit cards) on Rancho Vistoso.
 
The police were called in both cases.
 
PLEASE PLEASE LOCK YOUR CARS!!!!!!
 
I read of another issue when using your key FOBS to lock your car. The signals can be retrieved by close persons using a device.
The solution is to lock your car from the door, do not use the key fob. This is occurring more now with the economy so down and people out of work.
 
Please be careful.
 

We have had more reports of thefts from vehicles coming from neighborhoods.  These are crimes that for the most part you as individuals can stop.  These are crimes of opportunity.  Do not leave anything of value in your vehicles.  If you absolutely have to leave something of value in you car put in your trunk and then LOCK all doors and make sure that all windows are closed.  Most of the thefts that I have seen lately are occurring with vehicles that have been left unlocked. 

As for using the key fobs to lock your vehicles.  This is true, people can use this technology against you.  All a key fob is, is a radio frequency that is transmitted from the key fob to your vehicle.  If somebody was fairly close to you with the right equipment, they could possibly "catch" your radio frequency and use it to unlock your vehicles.  This is used mainly in shopping centers, where the criminal knows that you are going to be gone shopping for awhile.

Just for the record we have no proof at all that individuals have used "radio frequency cloning", to gain access to your vehicle in Oro Valley.  I haven't even heard of this happening in Tucson yet but it has occurred in major cities in Texas.  I only tell you of this to hopefully help protect you from this type of crime.  We suggest that you lock your vehicle by using the manual or automatic locks from the vehicle itself.  This way you are not sending out any radio frequency.  You can then unlock your vehicle with the key fob upon returning to your vehicle.

Again I want to reiterate that most of the thefts that we see from vehicles are from people who have stated that they left their vehicles unlocked the night before and left things of value in the car. 

So with Christmas literally right around the corner.  Please lock your vehicles and do not leave anything of value in the front of the vehicles.

This was sent to me by one of my Neighborhood Watch Coordinators.  Just passing it on to all of you

PLEASE PASS THIS ON
 

Neighborhood Watch
Oro Valley Police Department
Community Resource Unit
1171 E. Rancho Vistoso # 115
Oro Valley AZ 85755
(520) 229-5080

Safety Alert From OVPD

Scam!!

07/07/11

Be aware that this past week the Oro Valley Police Department received a report from a lady in our community who answered her phone believing that it was a bank representative calling.  The individual stated that there were security issues with her bank account and that they needed her to withdraw money and to meet an individual at the Target parking lot where she would turn the money over to him.  The victim believed this was a legitimate call and did what was asked.  This was a SCAM and she is now out a large sum of money.

Please if you ever receive a call such as this contact your bank and confirm that the call is accurate.  Phone and email are the most common scams being used by suspects and if you become a victim it is unlikely you will be able to recover any of your money.  Remember if there is any doubt in your mind do not be afraid to call the police and ask questions, we will help you in whatever way we can.

Oro Valley Community Resource Unit

229-5080

Beware, Another Scam!!

The OVPD also provided the following information about a more recent case of attempted fraud in our community:  They took a call from a lady who said a police department had called her saying there was a warrant for her arrest and that she needed to send $1,836 that day. They told her to go to Wal-Mart and get a cash card and to call them back with the numbers on the card. She did not send the money and called the police. They in turn made contact with the subject and knew instantly this was a scam. This case will be forwarded to the AGs office for investigation.

More Information On How To Avoid Being A Victim Of Fraud.

The preceding safety alert illustrates the need to be cautious and alert to the schemes of those who try to separate us from our money and other assets.  The best way to prevent this is to be knowledgeable and suspicious. The links below will take you to web pages that have valuable information and great ideas on how to protect yourself from being "taken".

FBI - Common Fraud Schemes

FBI - Fraud Target: Senior Citizens

OVPD - Identity Theft And Fraud Alerts

If you suspect that you are a target of fraud, do not hesitate to call 911!!

HERE ARE SOME SIMPLE ACTIONS THAT INDIVIDUAL SUN CITY ORO VALLEY RESIDENTS SHOULD TAKE TO PREVENT BURGLARY AND THEFT AT HOME.

• Lock your vehicles regardless of whether they are in the street, driveway, or garage.

• Don't leave valuable items and packages within sight in the car.

• Lock the door between the garage and house.

• Ensure your garage door is down and any other door or entrance to the outside is closed and locked.                               

• Have your street become part of the Neighborhood Watch Program. One street in Sun City Oro Valley—Green Tree Drive—has passed all the requirements to be designated as a Neighborhood Watch street, the first in Sun City Oro Valley.

At the least, make informal agreements with your neighbors to keep and eye each other's house.

• Call 911 if something does not seem right. Never avoid calling 911 because you think you may bother the police or you may be calling for nothing. OVPD Chief Danny Sharp tells us that the OVPD would always prefer to check out something that turns out to be nothing, than not to check out an incident that turns out to be something.

• If you are to be away from your home for more than two days, put your house in the OVPD Dark House Program so that patrols check on your house at random times.

OVPD DARKHOUSE PROGRAM. 

The last item mentioned in the list above is the Oro Valley Police Department's Darkhouse Program.  It is a very beneficial service that is underutilized by SCOV residents.  It can add another layer of protection for your home if you will be away for a week or more.  To learn more about it and how to take advantage of it, click here to view the Darkhouse Program page in the OVPD website.

NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH PROGRAM

Yes, although SCOV has an excellent neighborhood patrol (The Posse), individual neighborhoods and blocks are encouraged to organize their own Neighborhood Watch Program.  The Neighborhood Watch page in the OVPD website states, "A good Neighborhood Watch Program is one of the most effective crime prevention tools ever invented."  To view that web page and obtain information about forming your own Neighborhood Watch group, click here.