Theft declines but could rise in Peralta

November 18, 2009

Bosque Farms Police Department Det. Ron Haley told the Peralta Town Council tonight that theft is down in Peralta.

“Due to a number of arrests, I have seen a decrease in the last month, I believe, in the number of burglaries,” he said.

Haley said an increase in viable neighborhood watches are helping, too. He cautioned that burglaries will likely increase during the next couple of months.

“Holidays are coming and a lot of people do ‘window shopping’ at that time,” he said.

Haley is urging Peralta residents to keep their gates and doors locked and their lights on during the holiday season.

“As we get into the Christmas season, there is a spike in burglaries,” he said.

Haley said he’s identified no unusual trends in local crime but highlighted a “small incident” involving gunfire in a drug store parking lot near Peralta Elementary School on Tuesday, which spurred a lockdown of the school.

“Protocol was followed. The elementary school was on lockdown for about 15 minutes,” he said. “We did apprehend the people that did the shooting. We cleaned up the scene with the Isleta Police Department helping us.”

Peralta Councilor Leon Otero owns the business where the shooting occurred. He said he was impressed with the response time of the police.

“I want to commend the police force for that,” he said.

Bosque Farms provides police protection for Peralta, with Peralta providing some financial support to Bosque Farms.

Posted in: Police