Blades found at playground

Grounds crews on Monday sifted through sand at a Newport Beach

playground, where over the weekend, more than a dozen small knife

blades were found buried near swing sets.

A total of 13 blades had been found by late afternoon in a Bonita

Canyon park, where a 5-year-old child stepped on a blade Saturday

morning. The child was not injured.

Police and grounds crews swept the entire playground with a metal

detector. Search crews found four blades Saturday and nine Sunday.

Workers continued to search Monday, digging several feet deep and

sifting through the sand for any sign of remaining blades.

Newport Beach police are visually inspecting all of the city’s

parks, said Sgt. Bill Hartford.

The 1 1/2 -inch blades found in the sand are identical, Hartford

said.

Police are investigating whether the placement of the blades is

accidental.

This is not the first time blades have been found in an Orange

County park. In 2003, a Mission Viejo woman pleaded guilty to

planting razor blades and other sharp objects at playgrounds

throughout South Orange County. Lori Fischer was placed on probation

and later sentenced to a five-year prison sentence when she violated

the terms of her parole.

Police are treating the playground as a crime scene, Hartford

said.

Families in the quiet community were shocked by the discovery.

“This is scary,” said resident Dawna Clark, who usually walks her

four children to the park.

The playground, on a street next to tennis courts and a community

swimming pool, is regularly used by neighborhood children, Clark

said.

“This is such a tight, little community,” said Bonita Canyon

Homeowners Assn. President Lori Kaiden. “We all take care of each

other.”

The Bonita Canyon community is gated, but residents say that a

gate provides a false sense of security.

“A lot of people have access,” Kaiden said.

Residents maintain a list of a names of guests or employees who

have permission to enter the community, Kaiden said.

The community has a private security company that patrols the

neighborhood. Kaiden said they will boost patrols after this

weekend’s incident.

Janet Ahdout, who said her children sometimes play at the park

without wearing shoes, is hesitant to bring her children back to the

park. If they do come back, they’ll definitely be wearing shoes,

Ahdout said.

* LAUREN VANE covers public safety and courts. She may be reached

at (714) 966-4618 or [email protected].