A burglary suppression team has been launched in areas affected by the Eaton fire

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has vowed to increase patrols in Altadena to combat looting as residents begin to return to their homes nearly two weeks after the Eaton fire ripped through the county.

A newly formed Looter Suppression Team will provide increased vigilance and faster response time in Altadena neighborhoods that have been evacuated during the fire but may have been left unprotected by residents, the Sheriff’s Department announced Tuesday.

The team will join other sheriff’s deputies in the field and helicopter coverage.

“Together, these efforts ensure continuous 24-hour patrols to provide a law enforcement presence, especially in areas that are still experiencing service outages and increased security risks,” the Sheriff’s Department said in a statement.

Multiple arrests have been made in connection with the Eaton and Palisades fires over the past few days, including two people caught posing as reporters, an Oregon couple suspected of using an abandoned fire truck to pose as firefighters, and a suspect in a burglary at a Palisades fire station in costume. fire extinguisher.

Curfews are still in effect in parts of Altadena, but additional road closures and evacuation orders have been lifted in recent days.

There is no timeline for when the California National Guard will move to the county, according to Sheriff’s Deputy Jacob Sivley. Members of the National Guard joined local law enforcement in street search areas in the days following evacuation orders, but they did not have the responsibility to “arrest people in evacuation zones,” according to Sivley.