‘Hot zone’ | Patrols increase in southwest-side neighborhood after string of crimes, city official says

SAN ANTONIO — A homeowner on the southwest side is asking for more police presence in his neighborhood after noticing a rise in crimes on his street and nearby.

For more than a decade, Rosendo Hernandez has lived in Fountain Park South. He described the neighborhood as peaceful—at least, until recently.

“This is obviously becoming a hot zone. There is very high crime in the area right now,” said Hernandez.

He said the first incident happened in May on Fairmeadow, when a driver shot multiple rounds while speeding down the street. Hernandez captured the shooting on camera.

“Then it just escalated from there,” he said. “Break-ins to the house, stolen vehicles and speeding.”

Hernandez has made at least five reports to the San Antonio Police Department. One of the more recent incidents involved his own truck; a thief walked on to his property and drove off in the vehicle. 

“I reported it and I didn’t expect to get it back, but luckily they found it two weeks ago. It felt like a big violation,” he said. “You feel violated.”

Hernandez has his suspicions about the rise crime, but can’t prove his theories. He said other neighbors are scared to speak out in fear of retaliation. Still, he wants to put a stop to the crime and reached out to his local representative for help.

“We have reached out to our SAFFE (San Antonio Fear Free Environment) officers and requested additional patrol guys in the area, because there seems to be elevated things right now,” said Councilwoman Adriana Rocha Garcia.

The council member said the recently approved city budget allocated additional officers to the south patrol.

“It was perfect timing, because as this neighborhood needed some additional attention we were able to focus that additional attention and have those new positions focus on that area,” she said.

To further ease Hernandez’s concerns, Rocha Garcia said she will continue to advocate for more officers in the city budget. She also encourages residents to report offenses in the neighborhood.

“We need documentation that things are happening. So if you hear a gun shots, we need you to call it in to our office and police,” she said.

Hernandez also has plans to reach out to the city manager, and has been in touch with top leaders His direct message to Mayor Ron Nirenberg: “Please help us get more funding to the south patrol, but south patrol specifically because of the way that crime has gone up.”

KENS 5 reached out to the mayor’s office for a response and received the following statement:

“The mayor’s office staff has been working with Mr. Hernandez and is fully aware of his concerns. We were unable to send a representative to last week’s meeting, but a staff member spoke with Mr. Hernandez today. We are working with District 4 and the San Antonio Police Department to address the issues he has raised.”

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