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A mass stabbing that rocked Sacramento last weekend has the police promising more patrols in the area — with a local business group flexing its private security force.
The Downtown Sacramento Partnership, which represents businesses in the area, announced it is expanding private security patrols in Old Sacramento after the outburst of violence.
The security company, HQ Security, will double its presence and staffing on Friday and Saturday nights while patrolling the area in black cars.
“The downtown neighborhood needs to be fundamentally safe, welcoming for everyone and having proactive private security patrol to work in close collaboration with traditional law enforcement is that best practice,” Scott Ford of the Downtown Sacramento Partnership told KCRA.
The contract for beefed-up staffing with HQ Security is for one year, which could be extended afterward. Ford said the hope for increased numbers in the Old Sacramento area is to have “a visible presence.”
Old Sacramento, a historic district that hugs the Sacramento River, is a popular tourist destination that can not take on a reputation of being crime-riddled, authorities and others said.
“Old Sacramento is an iconic destination and part of this city’s identity,” Michael Ault, the partnership’s executive director, told CBS. “We need to protect it, invest in it and let people know this is a safe place to come.”
Sacramento police are also stepping up patrols every Friday, Saturday and Sunday night starting at 10 p.m.
There will be nighttime traffic restrictions throughout Old Sacramento, with several streets becoming pedestrian-only after 10 p.m. Drivers will still be able to enter and leave the area. The traffic changes are aimed at reducing congestion for safety reasons.
“What this traffic management plan does is it helps us be more present, more visible in the area, to have that sense of safety,” Sacramento police spokesperson Allison Smith told CBS. “If we need to step into something, we will be there right away.”
Sacramento’s existing nighttime curfew for minors will also be more heavily enforced in the area, police said.
All these plans were spurred after the mass stabbing incident left five men in a hospital. A booze-fueled argument exploded after 3 a.m. near Front Street and K Street, where Sacramento police responding to reports of an assault with a weapon found three men suffering from stab wounds.
Investigators arrested 18-year-old Sacramento resident Ezekiel Griffis after identifying him as a person of interest in the stabbing. He was booked into the Sacramento County Main Jail on assault charges.
Other high-profile incidents have plagued Old Sacramento before, such as a 2021 brawl involving about 50 juveniles.
Visitors told KCRA the increased security is not a bad thing.
“It does make you feel safe and secure that you want to come down and hang out and explore all the different venues. I would be coming down by myself at this point or with a girlfriend and before, I don’t think I felt that way,” said visitors Cindy Scheffler and Brenda Timmins.
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