Panhandlers return and asked to leave

Sheriff's deputies received more than one call that solicitors were back at the intersection of Ammunition and S. Mission Rd. at about 4 pm. Two women had signs advertising children suffering from brain cancer, and they were begging for money from drivers at the intersection. An adult male waited in an SUV nearby watching them. AC Investigations and Village News investigated the panhandlers last year, and this year in January and May.

The first time Sheriffs were called, they appeared to ask the women to not go into the roadway, according to a person on the scene. Again, they were observed in the street, according to the reporter, and the Sheriff arrived again, asked the panhandlers to leave, and they complied.

The signs are typical of what we have seen for years. Not only in Fallbrook and Bonsall, but in the surrounding cities as well. They have red borders with a photo of a child in the middle and a plea for money. Also, the cashapp appears to be the same man, Viorel Muresanu, who was the subject of prior Village News investigations and stories that was a resident of Anaheim. The man appears still to be connected to this group. When we checked in May, he had 32 traffic violations in the last couple of years in various towns. He also has a petty misdemeanor offense from Apple Valley, California for "Soliciting donations in a congested area prohibited." The Apple Valley § 114.08.B PROHIBITED ACTIVITIES are described as "No peddler, solicitor or transient merchant shall conduct business in any of the following manners:

(B) Obstructing the free flow of either vehicular or pedestrian traffic on any street, alley, sidewalk or other public right-of-way."

It appears he may also be the same person who was charged with 647 C, disorderly conduct, accosting another person in public or any place open to the public for the purpose of begging or soliciting alms in February 2022 in another city.

So, if the criminal records and the 32 parking violations are accurate, it's not only Fallbrook where they are soliciting. It is the practice of some Romanian, Romani, or Roma families, to live the gypsy lifestyle, according to retired Sheriff Leslie Albrecht, and they travel around from town to town, soliciting for various reasons.

This would explain why we see them every three or four months. According to Albrecht, who talked to Channel 10 after studying gypsies for nine years, she said they typically use their children to help panhandle and the children don't typically go to school because they are expected to learn the family "business." She was careful to say that most Romanian families who migrate here are law-abiding citizens and are not panhandlers or "gypsies."

According to the records available to Village News, Viorel Muresanu has been in the US since 2016, but we couldn't find any legitimate work or employment history ever in the United States. Maybe because this is his business.

Fallbrook Sheriff's Lt. Claudia Delgado encouraged people to call the Sheriff when they see this panhandling in town. She said it may seem like a small thing but if a call for service is generated, they can investigate the situation.

https://www.villagenews.com/story/2023/05/11/news/possible-scammers-use-tragedies-to-pull-heartstrings/73030.html