SIMI VALLEY'S MOST WANTED; OFFICIALS PURSUE FUGITIVE SUSPECTS.Byline: Michael Coit Daily News Staff Writer Their faces stare out from booking photographs, expressions ranging from anguish to contempt. What is shared by the more than 2,500 convicted or suspected felons in the active files of two Ventura County sheriff's detectives is their status as fugitives from justice. Tracking them down is a tough task. Most are on the move, many use multiple names and some have fled to other countries as near as Mexico and as far as Egypt. ``We get a piece of paper with a name on it and our job is to take that and develop it,'' said Detective Brian Worthan, who leads the Sheriff's Department's warrant detail. ``They're usually repeat offenders. They usually don't have any jobs or vehicle. A lot of them are illegal aliens and a lot of them are narcotics narcotics n. 1) techinically, drugs which dull the senses. 2) a popular generic term for drugs which cannot be legally possessed, sold, or transported except for medicinal uses for which a physician or dentist's prescription is required. users.'' State law requires ``due diligence'' to keep warrants active and enforceable. Vigilance more accurately describes the approach of Worthan and partner Don Jennings as they work to create opportunities for arrests. From January through July, the pair have cleared 460 of 1,300 felony fugitive warrants issued. Arresting or contacting one of every three is a pretty good average, they figure. ``A lot of these people are very transient, so going out and knocking on doors is not real effective,'' Jennings said. ``The majority of people we're seeking are actively hiding.'' Aiding those searches is the Ventura County Crime Stoppers stoppers see stopper pad. program. Established in the county 11 years ago as an anonymous tip service, Crime Stoppers added a weekly fugitive lineup in fall 1996. Of the 268 ``wanted subject'' listings published through July, Worthan said, 175 have been either arrested or have surrendered to authorities somewhere. ``It's growing in leaps and bounds. Every month we've got three or four fugitive rewards to pay out,'' said Jackie Youngern, a Moorpark sheriff's volunteer and president of the county Crime Stoppers. Later this year, sheriff's officials plan to bolster the warrant detail. Four reserve deputies will be trained and added to help, and two deputies eventually will be added for full-time duty. Patrol deputies will be reorganized to improve misdemeanor warrant service. ``The warrants are a major issue and our concern is maintaining due diligence Research; analysis; your homework. This term has caught on in all industries, because it sounds so "wired." Who would want to do analysis or research when they can do due diligence. See wired. ,'' said Cmdr. Dick Purnell of the Sheriff's Department's Special Services unit. Court rulings have established a standard determining whether warrants are valid. Law enforcement agencies A law enforcement agency (LEA) is a term used to describe any agency which enforces the law. This may be a local or state police, federal agencies such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) or the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). must show all reasonable efforts are made to notify felony suspects after three years have passed since a court issued a warrant, and after 12 months in misdemeanor cases. Although the warrant detail doesn't publish a ``most wanted'' list, Worthan and Jennings offered the names of five notable individuals wanted for serious and violent felonies committed in east county communities in recent years. In each case, the few leads developed have gone dry. Golan Ohayon and Asaf Cohen cohen or kohen (Hebrew: “priest”) Jewish priest descended from Zadok (a descendant of Aaron), priest at the First Temple of Jerusalem. The biblical priesthood was hereditary and male. , both 24, are being sought on suspicion of beating a young man, threatening him with a pair of 9 mm semiautomatic handguns and a buck knife A buck knife (or buck-knife) is a kind of folding lock-blade knife, meaning a knife whose blade folds into its handle, as with a common pocket knife, but locks into place when opened, so that it cannot close unless the release is pressed. , and then kidnapping him from a Thousand Oaks Thousand Oaks, residential city (1990 pop. 104,352), Ventura co., S Calif., in a farm area; inc. 1964. Avocados, citrus, vegetables, strawberries, and nursery products are grown. motel in September in a failed effort to extort To compel or coerce, as in a confession or information, by any means serving to overcome the other's power of resistance, thus making the confession or admission involuntary. To gain by wrongful methods; to obtain in an unlawful manner, as in to compel payments by means of threats of money from the victim's brother. A third suspect, Avitan Meir, was arrested and prosecuted on the same charges and is serving a state prison sentence. Ohayon and Cohen are Israeli nationals linked to organized crime in that country, where they might have fled. An FBI warrant for leaving California to avoid prosecution is active. Juan Francisco Morales, 25, is being sought on suspicion of threatening a former co-worker at a a Thousand Oaks pizza parlor and robbing the safe of more than $5,000 in cash, as well as checks and credit card receipts. Morales has been linked to the notorious 18th Street gang in Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. . He could be deep in that city's gang underground given the recent investigation into the killing of a Los Angeles police officer. Hector Hernandez, 28, is being sought on suspicion of shooting two brothers in downtown Moorpark following a fight earlier the same day in September 1995. Hernandez and the two brothers fled Moorpark, abandoning their homes, cars and girlfriends. Hernandez could be among the Mexican nationals who flee across the border, knowing that no extradition treaty exists between the two countries. Marwan Elshamy, 23, is being sought on suspicion of threatening a young woman with a rifle and demanding money in Simi Valley Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. in January 1996. Elshamy, then a Moorpark College Moorpark College is a California-state funded community college located on a 134 acre (542,000 m²) property reclining on a hill in Moorpark, a town in Ventura County, California. student living in Simi Valley, was arrested later the same month. Elshamy was released from the Ventura County Jail in February after a family member from Egypt paid the $25,000 cash bail bond A written promise signed by a defendant or a surety (one who promises to act in place of another) to pay an amount fixed by a court should the defendant named in the document fail to appear in court for the designated criminal proceeding at the date and time specified. . Elshamy failed to appear as promised in court five days later. He is believed to be in Egypt and can be extradited under an FBI warrant. ``We don't give up hope on any of them,'' Worthan said. ``We will shelve shelve v. shelved, shelv·ing, shelves v.tr. 1. To place or arrange on a shelf. 2. it until we get a new lead on the case because we've got the dump truck dumping (warrants) on us all the time,'' he explained. Some 200 felony warrants reach the warrant detail each month. Warrants can be for arrest, violating probation terms, failing to obey court orders, failing to appear in court and skipping out on a bail bond. Warrants are entered into both the Ventura County Criminal Justice Information System and the California Law California Law consists of 29 codes, covering various subject areas, the State Constitution and Statutes. See also
The county District Attorney's Office places a limited number of felony warrants in the National Crime Information Center computer system. That determination is based on whether public funds See Fund, 3. See also: Public should be spent to pursue a fugitive out of state and bring them back through extradition, Worthan said. While the paper trail is routine, the investigative work requires an ability to juggle numerous cases at a time. ``It's some footwork and some computer work. A lot of phone calls are made and then you've still got to go out and check addresses or leads,'' Jennings said. Dressed in plain clothes, Worthan and Jennings sit at desks facing each other in a far alcove of the Sheriff's Department's Special Services Unit. One minute they will be on the phone discussing a fugitive with a colleague in another corner of California, the next they will be scrolling through a computer file seeking someone's most recent arrest record or last known whereabouts. ``It takes time to learn the ropes here,'' said Worthan, who has worked the warrant detail the past nine years. ``A lot of these people are repeat offenders and I recognize them,'' he said. ``A lot of these people are career criminals. It's not uncommon to clear with one arrest several warrants.'' Working from the same master list, sheriff's detectives in other stations and detectives with police departments in Simi Valley, Ventura, Oxnard, Port Hueneme and Santa Paula pursue fugitive warrants on a part-time basis. Worthan and Jennings coordinate the help, but will never be wanting for new cases. ``We have job security,'' Worthan said. CAPTION(S): 8 Photos PHOTO (1--Color) (Ran in Simi Edition only) Dianna Bancale, 29 Brown hair, brown eyes 5'2'', 110 pounds. Wanted for unauthorized possession of a controlled substance controlled substance n. a drug which has been declared by federal or state law to be illegal for sale or use, but may be dispensed under a physician's prescription. . Could be in the San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo (săn l  `ĭs ōbĭs`pō), city (1990 pop. 41,958), seat of San Luis Obispo co., S Calif., near San Luis Obispo Bay; inc. 1856. area. (2--Color) (Ran in Simi Edition only) Moises Figueroa, 28 Brown hair, brown eyes, 5'9'', 148 pounds. Wanted for failing to register as a sex offender sex offender n. generic term for all persons convicted of crimes involving sex, including rape, molestation, sexual harassment and pornography production or distribution. . Could be in Texas or Mexico. (3--Color) (Ran in Conejo Edition only) Golan Ohayon, 24 Brown hair, brown eyes 5'6'', 140 pounds Wanted for attempted murder, kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon Assault with a Deadly Weapon is the term used to describe the act of threatening to harm one or more people by using a weapon (usually a firearm). Here, assault must be differentiated from battery as they are often confused. Assault is threatening to use force. Last seen in Thousand Oaks (4--Color) (ran in Conejo Edition only) Asaf Cohen, 24 Brown hair 5'8'', 150 pounds Wanted for attempted murder, kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon Last seen in Thousand Oaks (5--Color) (Ran in Conejo Edition only) Juan Francisco Morales, 25 Black hair, brown eyes 5'7'', 140 pounds Wanted for armed robbery Last seen in Thousand Oaks (6--Color) (Ran in Conejo Edition only) Hector Hernandez, 28 Black hair, brown eyes 5'7'', 155 pounds Wanted for attempted murder Last seen in Moorpark (7) (Ran in Conejo Edition only) Marwan Elshamy, 23 Brown hair, brown eyes 6'2'', 180 pounds Wanted for armed robbery Last seen in Ventura (8--Color) Two of last year's San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. fugitives are in custody. News, Page 20 |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion