By Bob Shallit
Arden Fair Mall isn't a smart place to park a stolen car.
Not since a new camera system was installed in late December.
"In three months, we've recovered 12 stolen vehicles and there are at least eight people in custody," boasts Steve Reed, Sacramento's very own "mall cop."
As head of Arden Fair security, Reed used a federal grant more than a year ago to equip two of his patrol vehicles with roof-mounted cameras. The vehicles cruise through the mall's parking lots, snapping photos of car licenses and feeding the plate numbers into a law enforcement database.
If a match turns up - either from a list of stolen cars or of owners wanted for felonies - the mall officers contact the Sacramento Police Department.
The first arrest occurred soon after the system went into place, following a year of fine-tuning and coordination with state and local law enforcement. A stolen car was identified, Sac PD was notified and Reed's crew tracked the driver to a mall store.
Where he was shoplifting.
"They arrested him and found (merchandise) stuffed down his pants," Reed says.
Another car thief was tracked down at Kinko's. Inside his vehicle were 50 "altered" drivers' licenses, 50 stolen credit cards and 25 pieces of stolen mail.
"They're going federal on that guy," Reed says, referring to federal charges for stealing U.S. mail.
And then there was the guy who was arrested after taking his new girlfriend to a Valentine's Day dinner at the Cheesecake Factory.
He went to jail. She "had to walk home," says Reed. "It was a lousy first date."
For the rest of Bob Shallit's column, see Thursday's "Our Region" section. Reach Shallit at (916) 321-1049. Back columns: www.sacbee.com/shallit.
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