Contributed

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the most daunting question facing the child welfare field was whether a precipitous drop in calls to child abuse hotlines across the country was masking an epidemic of abuse. With schools shut down and families under a lockdown, the fear was that child abuse cases might skyrocket.

On Monday, February 15, 2021, Riverside County Sheriff’s Department received a call regarding the brandishing of a firearm in the area of Simon Drive and Highway 111, city of La Quinta. Dispatch received information that an adult male suspect displayed a handgun at the victim and threatened to kill the victim. While deputies were en-route to the location, deputies were advised by dispatch that the suspect vehicle had fled the scene and was traveling westbound on Highway 111.

On Saturday, February 13, 2021, at 2:53 P.M., members of the Riverside County Regional Gang Task Force Region 6 conducted a traffic stop in the 1300 block of Wilson Avenue, in the city of Perris. Deputies contacted Gary House, a 28-year-old resident of Perris.

On February 13, 2021, about 11:57 PM, deputies from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, Moreno Valley Station, responded to the report of a hit and run traffic collision involving a pedestrian, near the intersection of Perris Boulevard and Fir Avenue, in the city of Moreno Valley.

On Thursday, February 11, 2021, members of the Norco Station Special Enforcement Team (SET), in partnership with personnel from the Riverside County Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force (RCAHT) conducted a comprehensive “John” prostitution sting in an effort to reduce the demand for sex trafficking in the city of Norco.