By Sara Beth Williams–
The Citrus Heights Police Department recently provided an update on the implementation and progress of a $2.7 million Organized Retail Theft grant awarded to the department last year to help combat theft-related crime.
The police department was awarded $2,752,138 in grant funding from the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) under the Organized Retail Theft Grant Program.
The goal of the grant was to provide jurisdictions with resources to curb the high rates of organized retail theft, Citrus Heights Police Chief Alex Turcotte said during a March 12 City Council meeting.
As of the end of 2024, the department has spent $862,703, with the remaining funds allocated toward grant-related activities through 2026. Grant funding covers costs for organized retail theft technology, data evaluation and collection, and assigned personnel to help combat organized retail theft. This includes a full-time Real-Time Information Center operator and a part-time dedicated organized retail theft detective.
The Real-Time Information operator is hosted in Elk Grove and provides real-time assistance and monitoring for in-progress crime in Citrus Heights, while also helping identify and share crime trends and repeat offender data across jurisdictions.
A part-time organized retail theft detective helps lead investigations, works closely with loss prevention specialists at local businesses, and shares data and trends. Turcotte said the addition of a new detective has been a success.
The police department has specifically focused on increasing technology to help combat organized retail theft, Turcotte said. Implemented technologies include the installation of 55 fixed license plate cameras and the deployment of three mobile camera trailers, with another three currently under consideration.
Prior to receiving the grant, the police department had been utilizing several public cameras as well as privately owned cameras provided by property owners who wanted to assist in combating theft.
Additionally, new Peregrine software has been implemented, which aggregates data from multiple databases into one centralized online location for easier analysis.
A chart shared with the Citrus Heights City Council on Wednesday showed a higher number of reported organized retail theft incidents following the grant, along with an increase in arrests. For motor vehicle-related thefts, the chart shows a significantly lower number of incidents, combined with a higher number of arrests following the grant. There were 76 arrests during the one-year period following the grant, compared to 55 before.
“It’s not that impressive yet,” Turcotte said, adding that the statistics are only “specific to the grant objectives” and that the department is still in the “implementation phase.”
Other technologies in the process of being fully implemented include Live 911 software, which allows officers to hear live 911 calls coming into dispatch. A larger video wall is also planned as part of a future Communications Center remodel project.
At the conclusion of the grant program, a third-party agency reviewer is slated to evaluate the efficacy of the grant program in a local evaluation report, according to Turcotte.
The grant was approved by the City Council in November 2023, and the funding must be spent within three years, with an end date of Dec. 31, 2026.
The Citrus Heights Police Department recently provided an update on the implementation and progress of a $2.7 million Organized Retail Theft...
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