Sheriff’s office steps up anti-gang activities, arresting 18 in Castroville, and 13 in South County.

Fourth of July weekend was a doozy for crime, with 864 calls for service to the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office. Of those, 117 were fireworks complaints, but there were also gunshots and robberies.

In Castroville on July 4, at least 100 people were gathered when deputies approached a 17-year-old holding a handgun. He was caught by a police dog, but only after deputies chased him and another half-dozen men. Deputies recovered three guns and made two arrests.

The following week, they went back to the neighborhood for more.

From July 10-12, the sheriff’s office made 18 arrests in Castroville on various charges. They recovered drugs, two stolen cars and two illegal guns. Deputies say three-quarters of those arrested are known gang members, or associated with gangs.

The renewed pressure on gangs from the sheriff comes after the Monterey County Joint Gang Task Force, a decade old, was dismantled June 30. That decision came as Salinas PD, the biggest player in the task force, reassigned all of its officers to patrol, aiming to fill the most basic policing functions.

“We’re still paying attention,” Sheriff Steve Bernal says. “We are doing the same work we did as a task force, just on our own.”

In South County, it’s taken the form of a formal new South Monterey County Violence Suppression Collaboration. Each South County city dedicated one officer to meet weekly with a sheriff’s commander, deputy and crime analyst to share information and develop targets. That group has helped arrest 13 gang members (or associates) since June 29.