Violent crime is up 17.5 percent in Gilroy and recent events
have left innocent bystanders scared and shaken.
Violent crime is up 17.5 percent in Gilroy and recent events have left innocent bystanders scared and shaken.
Wednesday evening, Gilroy Police arrested Jesse Silos, 25, who was wanted for domestic violence and brandishing a firearm, but not before he fled from police and jumped into a van driven by a mother with three small children.
Police stopped Silos as he was getting into a car in front of 611 Fairview Drive near West 10th Street. Silos jumped out of the car and fled east toward Hanna Street, Police Chief Denise Turner said, where he forced his way into a van and ordered the mother to drive. Armed, he hid in the back row of seats, behind the children. While officers were searching for the suspect, officer Marty Beltran noticed the driver of the van making eye contact and looking distressed, and officers were able to stop the van and safely detain Silos, who was trying to hide his gun and drugs from the police.
“It could have easily ended up a hostage situation,” Turner said. “It was good work on the officer’s part.”
Silos was arrested on suspicion of carjacking, being a felon in possession of a firearm, possession of a controlled substance for sale, resisting arrest and domestic violence.
“The family is OK,” Turner said, “but very shaken up and scared. The kids were crying and shaking.”
No one answered the door at 611 Fairview Drive Thursday afternoon and the manager of the apartments across the street declined to comment.
Earlier this week, a 32-year-old woman leaving Rio Nilo was knocked unconscious and sexually assaulted by at least two men wearing masks.
On Aug. 4, a shooting in the parking lot of the Burger King on Leavesley Road sent an 18-year-old man to the hospital.
“The shoot out at the Burger King is very troubling,” Turner said. “Anyone can be in there with their children and be placed in harm’s way.”
Violent crimes like rape, robbery, aggravated assault and homicide are all up significantly compared to last year, according to the Gilroy Police Department’s statistics.
“I’m not used to this level of violent crime,” Turner said. “I’m concerned with the trend and that the innocent are being swept in.”
Turner said that Gilroy is home to more than 300 documented gang members and more than 1,000 people on probation or parole.
“There’s a disproportionate number of criminals living in Gilroy,” she said. “We don’t want to alarm the community. We have put together a crime strategy to go after the people causing the problems.”
She said it’s encouraging that the GPD is catching these criminals.
Turner’s goal is to get everyone in the police department on the same page, in terms of the top crimes and criminals to focus on. Earlier this week, she held a meeting for her force to review the crime statistics and hammer out a game plan. They will convene at the end of the month to review their progress, she said. When officers aren’t responding to emergency calls, they should be working to put a dent in gang violence and other violent crimes, she said.
Turner has spoken with local business owners and is considering the idea of putting a small police substation downtown to enhance police presence, but lack of funds continues to be a problem, she said.
Longtime local developer Gary Walton is all in favor of a downtown substation and shudders at the double standard that seems to plague the downtown area.
“If a car was broken into at the outlets, that person would be back there shopping a week later,” he said. “If a car’s broken into downtown, people are saying ‘Don’t go downtown. It’s not safe.’ ”
He said the effort needs to come from business owners to enforce a zero tolerance policy.
“If you’re going to disrupt things, you’re not welcome,” he said.
Other local business owners agreed that the occasional hoopla downtown creates a feeling of alarm and drives people away from their businesses.
“The downtown is no worse than anywhere else,” said Dave Peoples, owner of Nimble Thimble. “I’ve never been panhandled downtown. I have been panhandled in front of Nob Hill.”
His business stays open past business hours while classes are going on.
“The ladies never had any trouble going to their car alone,” he said.
Incidents like the sexual assault downtown and the murder outside Rio Nilo that happened in March “scare people away,” said Socrates Diego, owner of Garlic City Cafe. “I don’t want that kind of clientele,” he said of the patrons that frequent the nightclub.
“That worries me,” he said of the evening incidents. “If people aren’t feeling safe at night, they might not feel safe during the day.”
Many of the violent crimes downtown are fueled by alcohol, Turner said, but Kathi Almaguer, manager of the Oakwood Lounge, said she hasn’t had any major incidents in the four months she’s been manager.
“They start screwing off and they’re out,” she said. “And they know it.”
A knock at the door of Rio Nilo went unanswered Thursday morning.
