“You are to remain on-foot, not seated and not in your car, to actively patrol the perimeter.”
This is a line AEGIS Security & Investigations publishes over and over in its post orders to company security officers. Having a decade of experience in physical security, we know the importance of our guards’ alertness when securing our clients’ sites.
On April 30, a security officer with an unnamed company was found zip-tied in his car at his stationed post — a multi-million dollar home in Beverly Crest. The robbery of this guard and the home he was supposed to be patrolling has made big news in Los Angeles, and it is an incident AEGIS avidly works to ensure never happens.
According to news reports about the robbed security officer, he was “distracted” by a woman in very short shorts. The woman was a set distraction for the officer as once he was looking at her, the other (suspected male) members of the theft crew secured him in his personal vehicle with zip ties, stole his two guns and knife, took his own stash of cash, and, most interestingly, took the gate clicker to the estate, granting them access to the multi-million dollar property that they burglarized.
While the media attention is on the guard’s distraction, there is an even bigger problem in this scenario. The security officer was in his car, NOT on foot.
At AEGIS, we know that it is critical to our clients that they feel their assets are protected. We also know that the best way to ensure our guards’ safety is to have them be trained and alert for any possible situation. Patrolling on foot is the best way to keep both our officers alert and our clients safe.
Staying on your feet keeps you on your toes. Once your body is moving, your brain is aware that it needs to be alert. If the officer had been on foot, he would have been harder to trap and he would have had more means available to him to fight the robbers.
Foot patrols, especially around estates, allow security officers to deter criminals for several reasons. First, their movement around the house, which should be randomized (not in a single repetitive pattern), alerts potential criminals that the property is being watched. Second, the foot patrol grants access to areas not accessible by vehicles such as narrow alleys, backyards, and other closed-in points of entry. Third, being on foot keeps the security officer alert and ensures they have room to defend themselves if necessary. Lastly, conducting a foot patrol with a flashlight is simply the most accepted practice in physical security. It is the basic standard to which all guards are instructed.
AEGIS security officers are able to communicate from their sheer presence as highly visible individuals in the area is under surveillance. When you have our officers for any commitment, whether it be 24/7, nightwatch, etc., you have an officer walking the premises, watching the entrances or driving the perimeter signal to the community that the area is protected. This will deter trespassers and ensure the safety of those on the property. See more reasons we provide 24/7 security.
Before making a sizable investment in any estate security plan, you may want to consider hiring a security consultant to review your options. A security expert should be able to save you money in the long run and help you create a safe and secure home. For large estates, we highly recommend conducting a broad spectrum threat/vulnerability assessment and on-site walk-through with one of our qualified consultants.
The goal of the assessment is to assess your property’s perceived risks and mitigate them to the extent possible. Through our unique approach, our consultants regularly avert sizeable investments in security staff by mitigating their vulnerabilities through other means. This effort may amount to over a $500,000+ in savings annually.
AEGIS Security & Investigations is a Los Angeles region company that is licensed and insured in the State of California to provide high-end armed and unarmed regular and temporary off-duty police officers, bodyguards, security officers, loss prevention agents, and event staff. Additionally, we offer services for private investigation, consultation, people tracing, and background investigation. Our trainings and workshops in the field of security licensure and counter-terrorism have been featured in news media and are renowned for their efficacy. For more information or to contact us, visit www.aegis.com.