Law enforcement officials advise business on crimes

Acadia Parish law enforcement officials shared information on criminal trends and activities with parish business owners and employees during a law enforcement forum Wednesday night in the Rayne Civic Center’s Ballroom.
In addition to trends, the parish law officials discussed counterfeiting, scams, workplace integrity and steps business people can take to safeguard themselves and employees.
The forum, sponsored by OneAcadia, grew out of law enforcement breakfast sessions involving police chiefs during which they exchanged information on criminal activities in their communities.
OneAcadia board members Pat Bordes and Bryan Francis and President/CEO Laurie Suire noted public safety is a vital component in economic development and quality of life issues.
Participants included Keith Latiola, chief deputy with the Acadia Parish Sheriff’s Office; Church Point Chief Albert Venable, Duson Police Chief Kip Judice, Crowley Police Chief K.P. Gibson, Iota Police Chief Daimon Daigle and Rayne Police Captain Tony Olinger, who represented Chief Carroll Stelly.
Each focused on specific crimes and emphasized the need to train employees on how to detect criminal behavior and threats.
Chief Venable described trends involving employee theft, shoplifiting and prevalence of insufficient fund checks. He urged business owners and managers to train employees on how to spot would-be shoplifters, maintain an orderly store and file charges against shoplifters. He is own case Chief Venable says he aids Church Point businesses by bringing shoplifting charges to the district attorney and judges.
Duson Chief Judice focused on counterfeiting, noting he has seen an increase in crooks “acid-washing” a $5 bill and charge it into a $100 bill. Because the paper is authentic, special marking pens fail to detect the fake money. “The most common counterfeit bills,” he said, are $10 bills exchanged for true dollars. He described one instance in which a clerk exchanged ten fake $10 bills for a $100 bill.
Judice also stressed a need to train workers on how to avoid quick change artists who are adept at confusing clerks.
“Scams are at an all-time high,” remarked Chief Gibson, as he described how people –– primarily the elderly –– are hoodwinked out of their money by promises of large cash prizes paid after “expenses” or “taxes” are paid.
Chief Deputy Latiola interjected a warning about scams where a fee must be paid to avoid a nameless arrest warrant. “Keep an eye on your elderly relatives who might be duped, he said.
Chief Daigle talked about workplace integrity and the threat of employee theft and embezzlement, including theft of customer’s credit card numbers or workers passing merchandise out the back door to thieves. “Not every employee is a 100 percent,” he cautioned.
Daigle suggested businesses needed to invest in high quality digital camera systems. Both Daigle and Judice emphasized the importance of placing camera outside a business or not too high inside a store to capture identifiable images of thefts.
Captain Olinger cautioned business owners to do background checks on workers, especially part-timers, and “to trust your gut” instincts.
Latiola touched on discrimination issues of age, sex, and race, as well as workplace bullying and disruptive behavior, urging business people to “have policies in place” and consistency in interacting with employees.
He also spoke about how domestic violence can impact a business and its workers. He cited several signs and symptoms of which owners or managers should be aware if a workers is in an abusive relationship, including arriving late to work or very early, unplanned time off and decreased productivity.
To aid the police who respond to a disturbance or theft, Chief Gibson suggested business owners should create a site survey, identifying would-be danger points, such as windows, shrubbery or doors where a theft might be able to hide or enter a building. After surveying their businesses, he suggested the local police department might be invited to review that survey. He also business people should prepare a floor layout plan to aid police who respond to an emergency or hostage/shooter incident.