Increased patrols and outreach by deputies have resulted in 180 arrests and more than 1,000 contacts with the homeless to offer them resources, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department said Thursday, Oct. 26.

Last month, the agency began patrolling the homeless encampments along the Santa Ana River bed in Anaheim, Orange, Santa Ana and Fountain Valley.

Prior to the patrols, the riverbed had received little law enforcement oversight as agencies disputed jurisdictional lines.

But in early September the Orange County Sheriff’s Department took the lead, hoping to quell the drug activity and property crimes that had spread into nearby neighborhoods. Officials on Thursday also expressed safety concerns about the use of generators and propane tanks, and discarded drugs and needles along the bike path.

The homeless population along the riverbed is estimated at around 400, with that number fluctuating daily. Of the 1,093 contacts made by the sheriff’s Homeless Outreach Team, 910 times people refused help, sheriff’s officials said. Some of the homeless were contacted multiple times.

“Although outreach is an important aspect of our efforts, a vast majority of the population we contact is resistant to the services we are offering,” Undersheriff Don Barnes said in a statement.

The 180 arrests were for such crimes as robbery, domestic violence, sex offenses and violating probation or parole.

“The criminal element that remains exploits other individuals (who are) experiencing homelessness, victimizes nearby residents, and threatens recreational users of the riverbed trail,” Barnes said.