"I don't know if there is a solution, to be able to go out and say, 'yea you positively would be able to stop crime in that area,'" says Sgt. Rob Merrifield.
Sgt. Rob Merrifield is frustrated after yet another crime on the bike path running South of the Chico State campus. Just after 2:00 on Saturday morning, an 18-year-old man was skateboarding when he was attacked by a group of five males.
"They knocked him off the skateboard and proceeded to assault him with their fists and kicked him. One of the males at the end of the assault actually grabbed and struck the man in the face with the skateboard," says Merrifield.
Witnesses called police, who arrested the suspects nearby. Three of them were booked into the Butte County jail, while the other two were taken to Juvenille Hall. Sgt. Merrifield says the incident is part of an ongoing problem with the bike path.
"Consistently, it's been a difficult area for us to patrol, we are able to drive onto that area but given the fact that it's fairly remote, it's difficult to get to. It's easy for someone to commit a crime on the bike path and be gone in a few seconds without anybody seeing what happens," added Merrifield.
Merrifield says they've explored new avenues to increase safety along the path, like putting on Awareness Campaigns, but Chico residents who walk the path every day say poorly lit sections concern them.
"If there were more lights, people would be able to see a lot more, be able to see people coming from different directions," said Jestina Rodden.
"I think that lights would definitely deter people from hanging out in the bushes and in the dark, because that's what they're doing. They're just hiding in the dark really and waiting for their opportunity to either take advantage of somebody or doing drugs and drinking," said Shawn Sullivan.
Merrifield says more lights won't scare all of the criminals away. He says it's best if people avoid the path whenever possible.
"We have been encouraging people to avoid that area at night and avoid the area alone and certainly in this case a little after two-in-the-morning, that's the worst time to be on the path," said Merrifield.
