WOODLAND — For a second year, authorities from Yolo County and beyond have joined forces to determine whether the county’s registered sex offenders are complying with the terms of their probation or parole.

In most cases, they were. But this week’s two-day sweep, dubbed “Operation Vigilance,” did net 15 arrests for a variety of violations.

A total of 63 searchable sex registrants throughout the county were contacted Tuesday and Wednesday. Of those, 12 were found in possession of prohibited items that put them in violation of their parole or probation, said Lt. Rob Strange, an investigator with the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office, where authorities gathered Thursday to announce the sting’s results.

The unlawful items included pornography or other sexually explicit material, children’s toys or movies, weapons, drugs and alcohol.

“This is something we’re passionate about,” Strange said of the operation, which he said resulted in no overtime costs for any of the participating agencies. “We want to protect you, your family, your children the way we would want our families protected.”

In West Sacramento, police also arrested a probationer’s sister after allegedly finding evidence that she was having unlawful sex with a minor, Strange said. Two parolees who were not the focus of the operation were arrested on warrants.

And one of the sex-offender parolees, 66-year-old Jimmie Baker of West Sacramento, may have experienced a feeling of déjà vu after finding himself arrested for the same violations he had during last year’s sweep.

“Operation Vigilance” was unique for two reasons, authorities said — the cooperation of more than 130 law-enforcement officers from 14 regional agencies, as well as the use of high-tech computer software to quickly search computers, cell phones and other digital storage devices for prohibited material.

Where it once took days, even weeks, for computer forensic specialists to search a computer’s files, the CD software “takes 15 to 20 minutes, depending on the size of the hard drive,” DA Investigator Brent Buehring said.

In addition to the parole and probation searches, officers made compliance checks with 183 registered sex offenders countywide. Of those, 130 were found in compliance, while 50 were not at home.

Three registrants were found to have moved from their last known addresses, and authorities said they are following up on those cases.

None of the arrests occurred in Davis, which is home to 31 registered sex offenders, Davis police Lt. Paul Doroshov said. Officers made contact with 26 of them during this week’s sting and found them in compliance.

Doroshov attributed the compliance rate to his agency’s dedication of a full-time detective to the city’s sex registrant caseload, an assignment that includes year-round compliance checks.

“They own the problem and do a good job of staying on top of it,” Doroshov said. “This operation ramps up that effort.”

Yolo County Chief Deputy District Attorney Jonathan Raven noted that the sweep took place the same week as two other high-profile child-abuse cases — one involving the sentencing of a former Woodland teacher to federal prison for downloading child pornography, the other regarding the closure of a Citrus Heights school whose principal is being investigated for possible child molestation.

“In Yolo County, we want to be on the front end of these very serious issues,” Raven said.

— Reach Lauren Keene at [email protected] or (530) 747-8048. Follow her on Twitter @laurenkeene

Authorities arrested 12 Yolo County registered sex offenders this week for allegedly violating the terms of their parole or probation. They include:

* Arthur Rodriguez, 51, of Woodland; parole violation for possession of coloring book pages, photos of children and children’s toys.

* Joseph Hays, 34, of Woodland; felon in possession of a firearm and associated probation violation.

* Robert Marriott, 41, of Woodland; parole violation for possession of sexually explicit literature.

* Jaime Quintero, 60, of West Sacramento; parole violation for possession of pornography and a photo of a young child who is unrelated to him.

* Thomas Martin, 50, of West Sacramento; probation violation for possession of pornography and other explicit material.

* Javier Arroyo, 27, of West Sacramento; probation violation for being in the presence of a minor. (Police also arrested Arroyo’s sister, 20-year-old Beatriz Arroyo, on suspicion of oral copulation and unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor.)

* Jose Reyes, 42, of West Sacramento; parole violation for possession of alcohol and Social Security cards in other people’s names.

* Jimmie Baker, 66, of West Sacramento; parole violation for possession of pornography, children’s toys, children’s movies and condoms.

* Dennis Reynolds, 45, of West Sacramento; parole violation for possession of sex toys and videos with children.

* Juan Monjares, 32, of West Sacramento; parole violation for possession of digital photos of gang indicia and narcotics.

* Roger Montue, 51, transient; parole violation for manipulating his GPS monitoring unit.

* Andrew Poore, 31, of West Sacramento; parole violation for possession of marijuana.

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Authorities arrested 12 Yolo County registered sex offenders this week for allegedly violating the terms of their parole or probation, plus a probationer’s sister after allegedly finding evidence that she was having unlawful sex with a minor. Courtesy photos

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A parolee living at the Granada Motel in West Sacramento is detained by authorities during Operation Vigilance, a compliance and enforcement check of Yolo County’s registered sexual offenders conducted over the past two days. Courtesy photo

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Law enforcement officers from Yolo County, the FBI, California Highway Patrol and state parole agency check on 13 registered sexual offenders living at the Granada Motel in West Sacramento. Courtesy photo

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