Tahoe Paradise Park plagued with vandals, trespassing, and now gunshots

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Tahoe Paradise Park in Meyers has been experiencing an increase of unwanted activity at night, mostly between the hours of 10 p.m. and 1 a.m.

Friday night was a change in previous actions when shots were fired in the direction of the park's host. Prior to that, incidents included fish theft during catch-and-release months, vandalism of property, sign destruction, screaming and shouting, unprovoked harassment and verbal threats to the onsite host house during the early hours, gangs of nighttime speeding e-bike riders using the lawns as a BMX track, causing damage to lawn areas and sprinklers, skid marks on the clubhouse patio that require power washing to remove, and park items being thrown into the lake.

On August 23 at 10:10 p.m., the park's host heard loud banging noises and went to investigate inside Tahoe Paradise Park. Upon shining a flashlight on the source, four youths were seen running away, and two to three gunshots were fired, possibly aimed at the host.

He immediately called 911 and the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office arrived to investigate and patrolled the park.

There is video evidence of the four youths entering the park, running, and then the sound of the gunshots. This evidence has been handed over to the sheriff to aid in tracking down and prosecuting these individuals, according to park officials.

The photo above is a photo, and authorities ask that if anyone can identify or recognize these suspects, please let them know. On social media they said they understand that a still shot zoomed-in on a video can create difficulty in identification so they appreciate any assistance in identifying the suspects.

The park is also experiencing an increase in graffiti tagging and they urge the community to report any crime they see discreetly, without endangering themselves.

Thank you to all who help keep our community safer.

Park officials are reminding the community that Tahoe Paradise Park has had a “no trespassing after dark” policy for two years. They have aimed to be as "light-handed" as possible with the policy as they know people enjoy taking their dogs for walks at night, stargazing on the beach, or enjoying a safe evening bike ride.

"We kindly ask all parents to speak to their teenagers and remind them to be respectful of the park and to avoid coming in late at night," said park officials on Facebook. "We don’t want to have to prosecute anybody; please encourage your children to be outside the park before it gets fully dark.
A huge shout-out to the overwhelming majority of our community who love, contribute, support, and help us protect our park. We couldn’t do it without you!"