Fresno police are in full force at the Big Fresno Fair

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Fresno police officers are kicking off day one of the Big Fresno Fair in full force. This year, many officers working the fair have body cameras that can record their contact with fair visitors. And cameras are monitoring many parts of the fair including the minute guests step in the gates.

Sgt. Dave Gibeault with the Fresno Police Department said, "Primarily you can expect anywhere from 30 to 70 officers to be on a pretty small piece of real estate."

New this year, many officers walking around the fairgrounds are equipped with body cameras. Police are also monitoring video cameras in and around the fairgrounds to keep an eye on crowds and potential problems. Also, fair officials have created a new policy banning remote controlled unmanned aircraft.

Stacy Rianda with the Big Fresno Fair said, "Drones are everywhere now and we want to be sure they aren't flying over the fairgrounds and kinda invading people's privacy. So we did implement a new drone policy."

The best news for those visiting the fair is that crime overall is down in Southeast Fresno over the past month. Violent crime has declined 33 percent and property crimes are down 13 percent. But officers want to remind the public to be aware of what is going on around them from the minute they pull in to park.

Sgt. Gibeault said, "We're ready for the bigger events but the one opportunity a burglar may have to break a window and take your purse or to grab a bag that's loosely carried, those are the crimes we worry about."

Some of the more common issues that are fair related include car burglaries and car theft. But most recently the biggest problem has been thieves targeting people for their cell phones.