Fair crimes include a goat theft

There were 74 arrests at the Orange County Fair this year, county Sheriff’s Department officials said, but none were as odd as the one for grand theft.

In the last weekend of the fair, an 18-year-old man decided to steal a 5-day-old goat from the livestock area of the fair, said Orange County Sheriff Sgt. Mark Long.

What’s an 18-year-old guy going to do with a 5-day-old goat?

Apparently, sell it on the cheap.

A Sheriff’s Department deputy saw the man holding something under his shirt and stopped him, but not before the man had already tried to hock the goat to a “carny” for $10, Long said.

The baby goat’s owner told sheriffs the animal was worth about $500, Long said.

“You know at the fair, if it ain’t nailed down, someone sometime is going to try and steal it,” Long said.

Authorities recorded four other felony arrests on the fairgrounds between July 11 and Aug. 3, officials said. According to Sheriff’s Department statistics, there were four felonies at last year’s fair out of 51 total arrests.

The five felony arrests at this year’s fair were for grand theft (the man allegedly stealing a baby goat), domestic violence, passing forged money, vandalism and possession of stolen property.

Long said a proactive approach by sheriffs led to the jump in arrests.

“Our philosophy out there is that if you arrest people for drunk in public or for minors in possession, it saves problems on the back end,” Long said. “You’re not ending up going out there when they want to get in a fight.”

Most of the fair’s arrests involved sheriffs citing people, then kicking them out, officials said. Nearly two dozen tickets were issued for minors possessing alcohol, and more than a dozen people were cited for possessing marijuana.

The other misdemeanors included alleged assault and batteries, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, trespassing, urinating in public and obstructing a police officer.

MOST FREQUENT FAIR ARRESTS

Minors in possession of alcohol — 22

Marijuana possession — 13

Assault and battery — 7

Obstructing a police officer — 6

Contributing to the delinquency of a minor and drunk in public — 5 (a tie)

JOSEPH SERNA may be reached at (714) 966-4619 or at joseph.serna@latimes.com.