Behind the Badge
A group of female college students didn’t feel safe living in their first-floor apartment after it had been burglarized.
Thanks to the good deeds of some Buena Park police officers and Explorers, the students were quickly relocated to a safer upstairs unit in the same apartment complex.
Officers Jeff Vu, Kristine Moreno and David Bernal, along with 15 Explorers from Post 474 took less than two hours to move the belongings from one two-bedroom apartment to another.
Buena Park Police Officer Jeff Vu as among a group of Explorers and officers who moved a group of female college students from a downstairs apartment to an upstairs unit, following a burglary.
Photo by Lou Ponsi/Behind the Badge OC
The department asked that the victims’ names remain confidential, for their safety. All the women are students at Biola University in nearby La Mirada.
“I honestly wasn’t expecting this many people to come,” said one of the students. “They’re awesome. I’m very grateful.”
When the student told the investigating detective that they no longer felt safe living in a downstairs unit and were planning to relocate upstairs, the investigator said he would try to find a mover.
But when the woman said an apartment was already available and they needed to move right away, the detective reached out to the officers and asked if there was anything the department could do to help.
Moreno, Vu and Bernal, along with a group of BPPD Explorers, jumped into action.
Buena Park police officers and explorers maneuver a bulky, heavy sofa during a volunteer effort to relocate the victims of a burglary from a first-floor to a second-floor apartment. Photo by Lou Ponsi/Behind the Badge OC
The three officers are the Explorers’ advisors.
“Our advisors let us know that there was a person that we would like to help out,” Explorer Capt. Michael Dakessian said. “We’ve done different things, but never something like this before.”
The Explorers were up for the challenge, and showed up at the apartment with the officers ready to work.
Household items were carried from one apartment to the next in a steady stream: beds, a refrigerator, a large bulky sofa, lamps and boxes.
The detective reached out to the officers on Monday, Aug. 8 and after a burst of collective energy on Wednesday, Aug. 10, the good deed was completed.
“It’s kind of what we teach … to put your community before yourself,” Dakessian said. “We would not hesitate to do it again.”
This group of Buena Park Police Department officers and Explorers gathered for a group photo following a volunteer project, in which they relocated the residents of a downstairs apartment into an upstairs unit after the downstairs apartment was burglarized.
Photo by Lou Ponsi/Behind the Badge OC
Buena Park police officers and Explorers volunteered their time to relocate a group of female college students into a second-floor apartment after their first-floor unit was burglarized.
Photo by Lou Ponsi/Behind the Badge OC
Buena Park Police Officer Kristine Munoz does her part during a volunteer effort involving officers and Explorers, who moved furniture to relocate the victims of a burglary into a new second-floor apartment. Photo by Lou Ponsi/Behind the Badge OC
Buena Park Police Explorers, from left, Blake Boyington, Crystal Murillo and April Ortega were among a group of Explorers and Buena Park police officers who moved a group of female college students from a downstairs apartment to an upstairs unit, following a burglary in their apartment was burglarized. Photo by Lou Ponsi/Behind the Badge OC
