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Captain Lauren Pettey
Operations Division West
March 2025
ODW Welcomes Lt. Jack Julsing
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Thank you for the warm welcome as the new Downtown District Commander! I am grateful for the opportunity to lead the District and return to Team 2!
I have been with TPD for about 13 years. I have held assignments in ODM as an officer, CNA as a detective, and Teams 1 and 2 as a sergeant and lieutenant. I also spent some time in the Homeless Outreach Team (now the CORE Unit) helping create that unit and the Homeless Response Protocol for the City and our department. I am very excited to be in my current position, and I can’t wait to get to know all of you. I like to talk (if you didn’t already know), so feel free to have a conversation with me if you see me out in the field or, if you are at the Downtown Station, my office is right behind the front desk. If you can’t hear my loud voice, chances are you can see me coming from a mile away – at 6’7” tall, I'm hard to miss! Hope to meet all of you in the future!
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ODW Squad 6 Shuts Down Illegal Gambling Operation in VIVA Area
Early in the month of November, Squad 6 CSOs noticed a spike in activity at a strip mall in the 3300 block of North 1st Avenue, while they were checked in at a POPP location at 1st and Fort Lowell.
The entire squad began to monitor and patrol the mall and observed heavy foot traffic going into an arcade. Nearby businesses reported issues at the arcade, including loitering, open air drug use, and prostitution.
Squad 6 confirmed the business as suspicious and numerous felony arrests were made in the immediate area for nefarious activities. One of the arrestees provided information about the arcade, which revealed an illegal gambling operation.
Officer Eliezer Lopez contacted the Arizona Department of Gaming, which conducted several undercover operations from December to January. A search warrant was served with the assistance of Officer Lopez, Officer Agustin Mendoza, and the Bravo 20s and 60s. All gambling devices were removed from the premises and the business was effectively shut down. For their outstanding work on this case, all members of Squad 6 were presented with a Commendation by ODW Command Staff. Great job Squad 6!
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ODW Statistics
Activity
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Type
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2025 Division Year to Date
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2025 Department Year to Date
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Calls for Service
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7,329
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25,238
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Officer-initiated Activity
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2,657
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6,521
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Gun-related Crime
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8
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25
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Homicide
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4
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15
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Traffic Citations
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3,056
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8,360
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Staffing
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Type
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2025 Division Year to Date
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2025 Department Year to Date
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Sworn Members
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136
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808
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Community Service Officers
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33
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147
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Professional Staff Investigators
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2
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17
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Professional Staff
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3
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235
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Officer Matt Clarke Receives Praise From Robbery Assault Unit
On January 24, 2025, there was an armed robbery at a cell phone store where a suspect implied a firearm and threatened the clerk. One of the suspects was identified and was linked to several other violent felonies, including carjacking of an elderly female (on 11/4/2024) and two separate convenience store armed robberies on the same night (11/6/2024). A felony warrant was obtained for the suspect by detectives.
Regarding the cell phone store robbery, the second suspect’s identity was unknown. Officer Clarke began investigating and researching associates of the identified suspect. He quickly came upon social media accounts belonging to a male who matched the accomplice, and noted that clothing worn by this male in his social media posts matched clothing worn by the suspect in the cell phone store robbery.
Officer Clarke and other members of ODW CRT (20s and 60s) collaborated with Robbery/Assault investigators and SIU/GCIU investigators and developed probable cause for discharging and prohibited possessor charges for the second suspect. Additionally, ODW/CRT gathered intel of his current whereabouts, which turned out to be in Operations Division Midtown. Contact was made with the second suspect at that location on February 17, 2025, and he attempted to flee on foot but was very quickly apprehended by Officer Clarke and other members of ODW/CRT. During the service of a search warrant, multiple items of evidence were recovered, implicating the second suspect’s involvement in these crimes.
As if that weren't enough, on February 28, 2025, while acting as uniform support, Officer Clarke just happened to LOCATE and POSITIVELY ID the initial suspect who was still outstanding. He was sitting at a bus stop in the area of Stone and Fort Lowell!
ODW/CRT (20s and 60s) again did an amazing job juggling the coordination of efforts with surveillance units, supervisors, S.W.A.T. personnel, and investigative units to quickly and safely take both suspects into custody. Detectives praised Officer Clarke's attention to detail, prompt communication, and tireless efforts in apprehending these violent offenders. Keep up the great work!
Crime Prevention Tip
Your WiFi router is a criminal's path to your network, your computer files, even your "internet of things," if your home's appliances and systems are connected to your network.
Unless you're an IT professional, securing your router probably doesn't sound like fun. But it is doable and more important – it's essential.
Both the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) and CISA (Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency) have instructions on how to do this. Set aside a time to learn how to secure your router and give yourself some peace of mind.
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