Dozens of homes raided in Delhi during gang investigations

Merced County detectives raided dozens of homes Friday, seizing firearms and making arrests in connection with a string of recent gang shootings in the community.

Exact numbers were not immediately available on the number of arrests made or weapons seized.

At least seven suspected gang members were taken in for questioning and seven illegal firearms were confiscated. At least five of those weapons were taken from two homes on the corner of Schendel Avenue and Phelan Circle.

The raids were the latest response to a string of about half a dozen shootings in Delhi since Sunday, Detective Sgt. Chuck Hale said.

“A lot of these shootings have been in broad daylight, in front of schools like Schendel Elementary, and another was in front of a preschool,” Hale said.

With law enforcement helicopters circling overhead, Schendel Elementary School was “locked down” around 1 p.m. Friday as deputies, agents and officers served search warrants at homes across the street. Students were kept inside classrooms for a short time as a safety precaution.

School officials were not available for comment Friday.

Numerous raids were planned Friday and were expected to continue into the evening. The results of those raids, including the number of arrests made and weapons seized, was not available before press time.

The sweep was a coordinated effort between the Sheriff’s Office, Merced County Gang and Narcotics Enforcement Team, Merced County Probation, California parole officers and the Atwater Police Department.

Hale said a home at the corner of Schendel Avenue and Phelan Circle has been struck by gunfire at least three times since Monday, all during daylight hours when schoolchildren could have been present. None of the children have been injured.

“Obviously we can’t have that type of thing happening in broad daylight with children present,” Hale said.

A home in the 1600 block of Schendel Avenue was struck by gunfire around 1 a.m. Monday, but nobody was injured, deputies said.

Most of the attacks have not have ended with any reported injuries. However, a 16-year-old boy was wounded Sunday afternoon in a drive-by shooting on Corner Street.

Delhi also has been the scene of one of Merced County’s three homicides in 2016.

Abram Sigula Hernandez, 23, was shot and killed March 4 in the 1500 block of Shell Street. The suspect in the case, Juan Carlos Gonzalez, has been charged with murder in connection with the attack.

Sheriff Vern Warnke said the public should expect to see such raids consistently going forward.

“And when we get our staff numbers up to where they need to be, we’ll be stepping up these types of operations,” Warnke said.

Warnke encouraged residents to report any suspicious activity to the Sheriff’s Office and said the community’s help is critical to investigating gang-related violence.

“We need them to be our eyes and ears out there and let us know when anything is amiss in their neighborhoods. They’re the ones who live there, and we need their help to take action and solve some of these problems,” Warnke said. “But if there’s a problem occurring that we are not being told about, then we can’t help solve it.”

This story was originally published April 8, 2016 at 5:25 PM with the headline "Dozens of homes raided in Delhi during gang investigations."