Santa Maria Store Increases Security for Holiday Shoppers
The recent rash of robberies in Santa Maria has caused one downtown business to beef up security for the holidays.
Fernanda Ortiz manages the clothing store Parallel Edit on North Broadway in Santa Maria.
She says the string of robberies that happened consecutively week after week in October pushed her store to hire additional workers for the holiday season.
“I think that will really help the customers feel more safe when they come in and shop especially all these robberies going on in Santa Maria,” said Ortiz.
Extra workers coupled with security cameras sounds like the perfect recipe for a safe shopping experience, but Ortiz says they aren’t just stopping there. She tells KEYT/KCOY/KKFX’s Cory James that they are also hiring a private security guard to keep a lookout for thieves.
“I think that will be an excellent idea. … just to keep an eye on people… and keep the crime down,” said Jos Bretado who was shopping downtown with his family.
Santa Maria police say they will have extra police patrolling popular shopping areas like the mall during the holiday rush.
They also are reminding people to put bags in the trunks of their cars to keep thieves from seeing them.
