Members of Fallbrook’s only documented street gang, the Varrio Fallbrook Locos (VFL), were caught off-guard Friday, April 11, when a surprise operation involving multiple law enforcement agencies took place here.

A multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional partnership comprised of approximately 55 officers from the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department, District Attorney’s Office, Gang Suppression Unit, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Carlsbad and Oceanside Police Departments participated in the sweep funded by the Edward Byrne Memorial Grant.

The grant, in the amount of $983,723, was awarded to the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department by the US Department of Justice for the purpose of reducing violent crime and gang violence in North San Diego County.

Led by Sheriff’s Detective Curtis Fewell, the special operation resulted in 12 arrests and one deportation, with others pending.

"We thought it was a very successful operation," said Fewell. "It’s not that we have a bad town; this is a special task force brought together to combat gangs. We are doing this in different towns and cities."

The arrests made on April 11 included those for possession of methamphetamine or heroine, under the influence of methamphetamine or heroine, transportation of methamphetamine, domestic violence/battery and driving without a license. In addition, four driving citations were issued and a dozen searches for various locations were ordered.

"I think it was shocking to some of the gang members to see that many cops at once; they saw that we can come out in force," said Fewell.

Areas targeted in the sweep, known to contain gang "hangouts," included South Vine Street, Alturas Road, Almond Street, Clemmens Lane, Aviation Road, Iowa Street, Old Stage Road and Ammunition Road. Fewell said gang members have a tendency to gravitate toward the back of properties, especially in multiple-unit complexes.

Fallbrook Commander Alex Dominguez said although crime (overall) was down 17 percent here from 2006 to 2007, the operation was requested because his staff was aware that several youth had recently been inducted into the street gang, which now contains fourth generation members.

"We learned that about seven new gang members were jumped into the local street gang," Fewell confirmed. "We have also seen an increase in the number of younger ‘pee-wees’ starting to show up who have yet to be identified and documented."

The operation also produced a substantial amount of valuable information for the Sheriff’s Department.

"The officers conducted about 20 field interviews with gang affiliates," Fewell said, that provided valuable information for detectives. "[Gang members] were stopped in vehicles and on the street for this purpose."

Fewell said the primary focus of the gang has been the use and trafficking of narcotics.

"The substances [gang members] primarily deal in are methamphetamine and pot [marijuana]," Fewell said. He explained that Fallbrook’s gang has about 130 known affiliates, with some 39 members currently documented with the Department of Justice. While the youngest are usually 12, he said there are currently some 7-year-old boys involved.

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[ Berry-Bell and Hall Mortuary ] their family members; it’s ridiculous," Fewell said.

The Fallbrook street gang has a known affiliation with the Mexican Mafia, Fewell said, as do most street gangs south of Bakersfield. Fewell explained that contact between members of street gangs and the Mexican Mafia is initiated in the Southern California jail and prison system, where prisoners agree to the Mafia’s conditions in return for their personal safety. Upon their release, these gang members usually continue to support the Mafia’s mission, he said.

"They are told it’s either that or be killed," Fewell said.

During the gang sweep, at about 7:30 that night, a shooting incident took place on Ammunition Road in front of Carl’s Jr. restaurant.

"It started out with a physical brawl," explained Sgt. Theresa Adams-Hydar. "A Hispanic male hit a Black male with a baseball bat; then, the Black male pulled a weapon and fired three shots – one shot [skimming] the Hispanic victim’s head."

Although the victim refuses to press charges, Adams-Hydar said, the Sheriff’s Department is continuing the investigation into the matter. It has been said that both males appear to be affiliated with street gangs.

"The [extra] officers were [in town] when the shooting went on; that was helpful," she said. Two evenings later, deputies responded to what eyewitnesses say was another gang-related incident, this time at Alturas Road and Cancun.

"We received two calls for service on that one," Adams-Hydar said. One call was from an elderly resident who reported that three teenagers were hiding in his backyard. The other call was for "shots fired" in the neighborhood.

"As it turns out, an 18-year-old and two 17-year-olds threw some water balloons at what they believed to be a group of gang members," Adams-Hydar said. "The alleged gang members chased the balloon throwers, who jumped into their car and then hid in the citizen’s back yard."

Adams-Hydar said the "gunshots" turned out to be the "gang members" banging their baseball bats on the car of the balloon throwers. An eyewitness, who asked to remain anonymous, says there were firearms discharged in the incident.

When asked what he thought the average resident of Fallbrook thought about the influx of officers in town that day, Fewell said, "A lot of people were happy to see it. Some of them said, ‘It’s about time.’"

"Hopefully it sets a precedent that we don’t want gangs here and we are going to find out who they are," he said. "We want them to know that if they do bad things, they will go to jail, because they have a choice whether to be a gang member or not."

Fewell said he doesn’t know exactly when another operation of this magnitude will take place here, but says it will – because more funding is in progress.

"It’s going to happen soon; more federal grants are coming down the pipeline for more of these operations," Fewell said. "We will also be doing special drug operations."