Lemoore Police Department updates city leaders on local crime stats

View the Lemoore Police Department’s Annual Report

While all calls for service in 2017 increased slightly, misdemeanor and felony calls decreased somewhat. The positive news included drops in nearly all major crimes, including, auto theft, robbery, and burglaries. This past year significant crimes included the three homicides, 20 rapes, 308 assaults, 267 robberies, 75 auto thefts, 93 burglaries, and 21 robberies.

While assaults did go up over 2016 levels, they’re still lower than 2015 and 2014. The report also states that “it is significant to note that adult arrests increased 2.39 percent to 1,372 from 1,340 in 2016. Juvenile arrests also rose 7.58 percent to 227 from 211 in 2016.

The department’s detectives worked on 206 cases in 2017, clearing 90 percent of them. The remaining remain open or active.

Because there were three homicides, the department was kept busy. The cases required extensive investigations and consumed a significant amount of the department’s times and resources. The work included interviews, identifying witnesses, interrogations, search warrants, and compiling forensic evidence.

Lemoore Police Chief Darrell Smith, in his annual message, explained the purpose of the annual report. It’s purpose, he said, was “to highlight the department’s significant achievements in serving our community and to present information and crime statistics in order to keep our community members informed and involved.”

One of those homicide arrests was suspect Gabriel Gaytan, who was arrested by police months in the death of Lemoore’s Anthony Andrew Magana. Magana was found stabbed on May 17, 2017 on East Hanford Armona Road.

The Lemoore Police Department, with assistance from the Corcoran Police, arrested Gaytan on Jan. 16, 2018. Lemoore detectives identified Gaytan and Jaime Alfredo Macias as the two suspects responsible for Magana’s death. Macias was arrested on May 22, 2017.