Press Releases
This morning, San Angelo Police Department employees gathered at the McNease Convention Center to celebrate the career and retirement of Officer Alfred Rios, who is leaving the Department after nearly 25 and one half years of service.
Rios began his career with the Department in March of 1992 and attained his Master Peace Officer Certificate in May of 1998. At the time of his retirement, Rios had 2,100 hours of training.
Throughout his tenure, Rios served all 25 years in the Department’s Patrol Division and Honor Guard Detail.
Rios received several awards and commendations throughout his career. In 2012, Rios was recognized by the District Attorney’s Office for his work on the Aggravated Robbery case against John Henry Carter.
Prior to his law enforcement career, Rios served in the United States Army National Guard from 1982-2003.
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San Angelo Police are investigating an early morning crash that sent a motorcyclist to a nearby hospital.
Just after 8:00 a.m., San Angelo Police and Fire Department personnel were dispatched to the intersection of W. 19th Street and N. Bryant Boulevard for the report of a major motor vehicle crash with a motorcyclist pinned between a tractor truck and small passenger car.
A preliminary investigation revealed the 2010 Honda motorcycle was traveling southbound on N. Bryant when it entered the intersection at 19th Street with a green light. The driver of a 2011 Toyota Prius that was traveling westbound on 19th ran a red light at the intersection and T-boned the motorcycle, which was towing a small trailer. The force of the collision caused the motorcycle and it’s trailer to spin around and collide with a 2016 Freightliner tractor truck that was stopped at the southwest corner of the intersection. The Prius then spun around and collided with the motorcycle as well as the front bumper of a 2002 Toyota Camry that was also at the southwest corner of the intersection.
The motorcyclist, a 60-year-old Carlsbad man, was transported to Shannon Medical Center with incapacitating injuries. The driver of the Prius, a 68-year-old Sterling City woman, was assessed by medics at the scene and released. The driver of the Camry, a 79-year-old San Angelo man, reported minor injury but refused treatment at the scene. The 51-year-old driver of the Freightliner was not injured. The Freightliner is owned by C & W Leasing out of Abilene, Texas.
The driver of the Prius will be issued a citation for Disregarding Red Light.
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The San Angelo Police Department wants citizens to watch out for unreliable contractors and independent handypersons who may try to “clean up” by making a quick buck off victims of Friday’s storm.
The Department has already received reports of scammers, mostly independent handypersons who are offering cleanup and repair services at inflated rates. Other organizations and contractors, often referred to as “storm chasers”, will soon be traveling to Tom Green preying on that damage. These door-to-door scammers are a real threat; they rip-off consumers with promises of great work at cheap prices.
Consumers should be wary of anyone showing up at your door offering services. If anyone comes to your door offering to begin work on damage, take their information and tell them that you will follow up if you are interested.
If your property has been damaged as a result of severe weather, follow these Better Business Bureau tips:
- When approached by a contractor, ask for proof of licensing and bonding.
- Try to get at least 3-4 quotes from contractors, and insist that payments be made to the company, not an individual.
- Do not pay for the job in advance. Be wary of any contractor who demands full payment up front.
- Do not hire people who show up at your door offering services such as tree or debris removal and roof repair.
- Resist high-pressure sales tactics such as the "good deal" you'll get only if you hire the contractor on the spot.
- Check out the company first with the BBB at www.bbb.org and deal only with reputable local contractors.
- Get a written contract that specifies the price, the work to be done, and a time frame for completion.
- Pay by credit card, if possible; you may have additional protection if there's a problem. Otherwise, pay by check. Never pay in cash.
- Prices are often high in the immediate aftermath of a storm. Buy only the services that are necessary to make your home safe and habitable. Wait at least a few days to hire other contractors because the rates are likely to drop.
- Check that the contractor's vehicle has signs or markings on it with the business name and phone number.
- Be sure that all promises made are put in writing.
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At approximately 7:00 p.m. on Friday, June 23, 2017, San Angelo was impacted by a severe storm that taxed first responders and dispatchers.
San Angelo’s resources performed beyond expectation in emergency operations and many off-duty SAPD Officers and Dispatchers reported to work without being asked.
During Friday’s storm, San Angelo Public Safety Communications recorded seven hundred sixty-two (762) calls from 8:00 p.m. through midnight. This included all incoming non-emergency, 911, abandoned, and outgoing calls. To put this volume into perspective, during that four hour time period, dispatchers averaged 190.5 calls per hour. In comparison, dispatchers averaged 115 total calls during the same four hour period the previous Friday for an average of 28.75 calls per hour.
Throughout the duration of the storm, our Officers responded to numerous incidents in concert with partner agencies , assisting with life-threatening tree and electrical hazards, traffic issues caused by downed signals, signs, utility lines, and debris in roadways, alarm calls, grass and structure fires, traffic crashes, as well as other non-storm related calls for service.
One noteworthy issue attributed to the large call volume was by citizens who called Police and Fire Dispatch to report power outages or to inquire about estimated repair times. San Angelo Police and Fire Dispatch lines ( 911 and non-emergency 325-657-4315) should never be used to report power outages or to inquire about estimated repair times. These reports should go directly to AEP by calling 1-866-223-8508 or online at https://www.aeptexas.com/outages/report. Department officials are asking citizens to save this important contact information for future reference and to help us keep emergency lines open for true emergencies.
As we move forward into Texas’s severe weather season, we ask citizens to be prepared. Visit www.ready.gov/severe-weather to develop a plan, monitor local National Weather Service updates at http://www.weather.gov/sjt/ or by smart phone weather application, and to subscribe to local public safety alerts at https://local.nixle.com/san-angelo-police-department/.
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Residents of San Angelo and the surrounding area are cautioned to be aware of a telephone phishing scam to collect money from fake warrants.
The San Angelo Police Department has received reports from citizens who have been contacted by individuals via telephone who are portraying themselves as representatives of the San Angelo Police Department. Although the Caller ID shows a 325 area code, we believe the calls are originating from out of the area.
In this scam, the suspected caller attempts to deceive the victim by advising them of an outstanding fine or warrant and that they must pay the fine immediately to avoid going to jail. The scammer will then provide a fraudulent solution, such as purchasing a pre-paid credit card in the amount of the fictitious fine. Prepaid cards are just like paying in cash — once the money is gone, you can’t get it back.
The San Angelo Police Department never contacts individuals over the telephone to demand payment for outstanding fines or warrants, in fact, we do not collect fines. As for warrants, we prefer face-to-face contact, followed by a short drive to the Tom Green County Jail.
As a reminder, never give personal identifying information – including banking information – over the phone or to strangers.
If contacted, simply hang up and block the call if your device allows. If you have fallen victim to this crime, contact your local law enforcement agency to file a report and report the imposter to the Federal Trade Commision at ftc.gov/complaint. Select the category “Scams and Rip-offs” then “Impostor Scams”.
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