Raley’s posting off-duty deputies outside some stores during coronavirus crisis

With panicked shoppers clearing out grocery stores of toilet paper, water and fresh chicken, Raley’s has begun posting off-duty sheriff’s deputies outside some of its markets to help keep things calm.

Just after 6 a.m. Thursday, deputies could be seen posted outside the Raley’s at Fair Oaks Boulevard and Walnut Avenue and in front of the Bel Air market near Fair Oaks and Manzanita Avenue.

Deputy Andrew Swift, sitting in uniform in his sheriff’s office SUV just outside the front door of the Raley’s Thursday afternoon, said off-duty deputies may be positioned at the stores for the next two weeks.

”It’s really to give people a sense of calm,” Swift said.

That store has attracted hordes of shoppers since last weekend, with many filling the parking lot in time for its 6 a.m. opening.

Inside, the toilet paper and bread aisles were largely empty Thursday afternoon, but Swift said there had been no problems as a result of the continued scarcity of items.

Sheriff’s office spokeswoman Sgt. Tess Deterding said the move was an effort by Raley’s to increase security, not the sheriff increasing patrols.

Raley’s spokeswoman Chelsea Minor did not say how many stores will be using the deputies, but said the move is simply a precaution and that the stores are using “multiple police entities,” including Sacramento police.

“This is a preventative measure,” she said in an email. “For customer and team members peace of mind, we have increased security in our stores.

“The health and safety of our team members and our customers remains our top priority. We are increasing the hours for existing contracted security and hiring off-duty police officers. We want to remind people to be civic minded and be kind to each other and our team members!”

This story was originally published March 19, 2020 at 5:31 PM.