Officers visit homes of registered sex offenders to protect trick-or-treaters

SAN ANTONIO — SAN ANTONIO, Texas – Halloween night will be filled with lots of candy and kids wearing their favorite costumes.

And law enforcement was out to keep track of registered sex offenders in our area, ensuring their nights of fun were kept safe.

A large number of ghouls and ghosts wander the streets trick-or-treating, and authorities want to make sure they are safe from possible dangers, including sex offenders.

“Many people we visit on Halloween have child victims. “So if we want to reduce the risk to children in our community, that’s what we want to do.”

Jesus Salazar and Imelda Gonzalez went door to door to the homes of high-risk offenders to ensure they were following the protocols in place.

“Make sure there are no Halloween decorations. Make sure you don’t have sugar bowls of those things. Anything that would let people know they were trick-or-treating on Halloween, things like that,” Community Control Officer Jesus Salazar said.

“We received help from the sheriff this evening. So we’re heading southwest. I will be at the center of every area in our county and the suburbs,” said Adult Probation Officer Imelda Gonzalez.

Salazar says there are roughly more than 3,000 registered sex offenders in San Antonio.

“We’re trying to get to at least 300 in total. That’s usually our goal, to catch as many people as possible, to double-check on them, to make sure they’re home and where they need to be,” Salazar said.

The door to the first house they went to check in did not open.

“When they’ve been told it all month long, we want to know why. “So it happens, so we move on to the next one and find out what they have to say next,” he said.

Gonzalez tells us these criminals have to be home by 5:30 p.m.

“We don’t want them to come into contact with them, offer them candy, or go to places where kids are gathering tonight,” he said.

They say these criminals aren’t just checked on Halloween. However, they provide consistent monitoring by making monthly home and office visits.