RIVERSIDE: Gangs are thought to be responsible for seven homicides in Arlanza and La Sierra.
07:56 AM PST on Friday, January 18, 2008
By JOHN ASBURY
The Press-Enterprise
RIVERSIDE - Friends say Juan Carlos Isais was trying to get away from the trouble and gang activity in the Arlanza neighborhood where he grew up. The 23-year-old Norte Vista High School graduate was looking for a job and trying to cut ties with those who might cause problems.
Violence followed him to a party late on the night of Jan. 12. Police said a group of uninvited gang members returned with guns after a fight at the house on Trey Street and opened fire, fatally striking Isais and injuring another man.
"He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time," childhood friend Simon Arroyo said during a car wash benefit at Bryant Park for Isais that continues through Saturday. "He isolated himself; that's the only way to move on."
A new generation of middle school and high school gang members is developing in schools, causing a re-emergence of many of the gangs, Riverside police Lt. Bob Williams said. Though the area was mostly calm during the past year, gang crimes, including shootings and tagging, have increased, Williams said.
Isais' death was the third killing in the past month for the Arlanza and southern La Sierra areas, which are southwest of Arlington Avenue and Van Buren Boulevard. Police said though the crimes may not be connected, they all appear to be gang related.
Arlanza resident Al Figueroa washed cars this week while wearing a T-shirt that reads "R.I.P. Luis Ceja," who was killed in San Bernardino two years ago. Isais is the third friend of Figueroa's who was shot to death.
"It happens and it's tough," Figueroa said. "Over here you can't expect anything. You don't know who has a gun."
The recent spate of violence follows a history of crime in the area. Since January 2006, the Arlanza/Southern La Sierra area has seen seven homicides, accounting for almost one third of homicides in Riverside during that period.
"Arlanza has emerged as a trouble spot over the past several years," Riverside police spokesman Steven Frasher said. "It's probably one of our greatest areas of concerns."
On Dec. 15, Henry Stewart Robles, 30, was shot and killed by unknown visitors who opened fire at a party on Inwood Drive in Southern La Sierra.
A week later in Arlanza, a group of men robbed two men, fatally stabbing Manuel Sanchez Rosas, 42, in front of a market on Philbin and Rutland avenues on Christmas Eve. Police have no suspects in either killing but have identified gang motives or trends in a turf associated with the "Arlanza 13" gang and the "51-50's" gang.
"They're trying to get a name for themselves, which has (fostered) the evolution of gangs in the Arlanza area," Williams said.
Police have increased patrols in the neighborhood in the past seven months, adding three officers to patrols that have made several arrests for tagging.
Hope for the Future
Residents, police and community leaders acknowledge that violence has been a problem, but they argue that the area as a whole should not be tarnished by the crime that mostly involves gangs.
"I think we've taken our eye off the ball for other areas, not realizing how desperate the Arlanza area is," said Riverside City Councilwoman Nancy Hart, whose Ward 6 includes Arlanza. "Sometimes if we step on a gang somewhere else, like the Eastside, it might tend to migrate to Arlanza."
Riverside police and the Riverside County district attorney's office conducted a sweep of the "51-50's" gang last summer and conducted another gang sweep in 2006. Police say that while clampdowns in other parts of the city may have caused gangs to spill over to other areas, it hasn't been a major cause of the violence.
Arlanza was pinpointed in 2000 as one of the city's areas most in need of services because of youth violence, low incomes and a lack of child care and affordable housing, said Roxie Alcaraz, project manager for the Youth Violence Prevention Center based at UC Riverside.
City leaders and activists say community programs and civic improvements have helped. They cite the opening of the Arlanza Community Center and day care facility at Bryant Park in 2003, and the city's expected addition this year of a fitness center and boxing club at the park. They hope the facilities will help return ownership of the neighborhood to the residents. A sign that reads "Neighborhoods that work 2002" is now marred with graffiti.
Also since 2000, the city and the police department have formed closer relationships with the community, offering counseling and forming the Arlanza neighborhood partnership among other assistance, Alcaraz said. She said benefits of the programs may not be seen for five to 10 years.
"It's not fair to paint Arlanza with that (negative) brush all the time. A lot of good families have lived here a long time that haven't shot at each other. It's a pretty stable neighborhood," said Hart, a 40-year Arlanza resident. "The reason it's unfairly portrayed is a lot of garbage goes on here."
Reach John Asbury at 951-368-9288 or jasbury@PE.com
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