December 2007 Archives
This from reporter Brian Day who reports that Pasadena Police are on "plastic chair patrol" today. Apparently, patrons of the coveted Tournament of Roses parade are not allowed to leave their belongings unattended on the parade route. That includes those ever popular plastic chairs usually used as placemarkers for eager parade watchers. Read on:
Though officially Rose Parade watchers are not supposed to begin claiming their street-side spots from which to observe the festivities, some just couldn't wait, Pasadena police said.
Shortly after 10 a.m., people were already staking out prime locations along the parade route with lawn chairs, said Pasadena police Lt. Keith Jones.
All chairs and other items along the route must not be left unattended or they will be impounded Jones added, and will have to be picked up later.
Not every seat must necessarily be filled, however.
One person can keep guard over several chairs for friends or family, Jones said, but within reason.
It's not OK for one person to watch over a large number of seats, he said.
Police have arrested Ernesto Rosas, 24, of Montebello, for allegedly crushing two men with his SUV at a house party on Sunday, killing one and injuring another.
Rosas was detained walking on the streets in Montebello on Sunday afternoon. He was arrested on suspicion of murder, attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon, California Highway Patrol Officer Joe Zizi said.
Authorities believe Rosas was at a house party in the 7700 block of Vanport Avenue about 1 a.m. Sunday when he started to become “unruly,” according to Zizi.
Francisco Vasquez, 24, who lived in the Vanport home and his friend Sean Nunez, 26, of Los Angeles, asked Rosas to leave and escorted Rosas out to his car.
While Vasquez and Nunez were walking back to the house, Rosas allegedly backed his 2004 Chevrolet Tahoe into the men, Zizi said.
Nunez became pinned between the Tahoe and another car, and was crushed by the impact, Zizi said. He died on scene.
Vasquez was hit but managed to avoid being crushed, Zizi said. He was treated and released at the scene with minor injuries.
Zizi wouldn’t say if Rosas’ alleged acts were retaliation for getting kicked out of the pary. But he did say that witness reports lead police to believe that Rosas intentionally backed his Tahoe into the two men. Zizi did not know if Rosas was intoxicated or under the influence of drugs at the time of the incident. He was unsure whether toxicology reports were even ordered.
“But I can tell you that that is not a defense for this crime,” Zizi said.
A press conference is scheduled for noon today at the CHP's Santa Fe Springs office. Apparently, Nunez' family members will make statements and police will release Rosas' booking photo.
Officials are talking very little about the stabbing incident that resulted in Jackie VIllanueva's death early Friday a.m.
Reporter Caroline An went out to the crime scene Saturday and filed this report. Photg Keith Durflinger captured a nice shot of the memorial.
The victim in the Pico Rivera homicide has been identified as 22-year-old Jacklyn Villanueva. We still don't know where she was from, but we are searching for more information about Jacklyn now.
A woman was stabbed to death early Friday outside a home on Myrtle in Pico. It was the city's ninth murder of 2007. The 20-year-old victim has not been identified by the Coroner's Department, officials said.
Frank,
Read your blog in reference to the letter I sent out to the different media groups.
UPDATED: 1/22/08
The post has been removed by me because it contained no local relevance.
Still haven't worked out the bugs to include a map just yet, but the SGV Homicide datebase is up to date and ready for purusal.
The tally to date for the SGV, Whittier and Pasadena is 87. Not sure how that compares to last year. The LAT Homicide Report lists 820 homicides for the county. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department reports 320 in its service area for 2007. That's compared to 402 in 2006.
We were asleep at the wheel and missed getting the news story about the shooting at Colorado and Fair Oaks in today's paper.
The Times got the news in their B-Section with quotes from Lt. Randall Taylor and Chief Barney Melekian.
Reporter Caroline An was at the scene moments after the shooting occurred and was able to get some color. She is working on a story.
11:42 A.M. UPDATE ADDED HERE.... I just read our initial story on the shooting and what strikes me is how Lt. Taylor apparently inplied that Pasadena officers chased down the shooting suspect and captured him moments after the incident.
In fact, cops were nowhere around when it went down and the shooter was chased down and captured by volunteers in Old Town there to guide tourists around.
UPDATE ENDS HERE
In my opinion, here's some of what we need to find out:
- How will this incident affect security in the lead up to the Rose Parade? Wasn't it just last week that Melekian said security was so tight that he wouldn't allow the Falun Gong chapter to have their own pre-parade event?
- How will it affect shopping? There are plenty of tourists in town for the Rose Bowl game. Are they now going to travel to safer shopping destinations?
- Is this a spill over from the increased violence plaguing Northwest Pasadena throughout the year?
- The police department said it has no plans for beefed up security in Old Town. Why not?
Old Town Pasadena, known as a premier shopping and restaurant destination was instead the scene of a shooting Wednesday night in which an Arcadia man was injured. Police are saying the shooting was the result of a drug deal gone bad. An 18-year-old is in custody and a 23-year-old is at large.
Here's Tania Chatila's map of key points in the incident:
View Larger Map
Last week we chronicled the travails of riding Metro with a bike.
This week Crime Scene reprinted a letter from a true crime author who claimed to have intimate knowledge of our computer systems. The Crime Scene Question was: Should We Post "The Story" Here?
UPDATED 1/22/08
I've removed this post because it contains no local relevance.
It's not really crime-related, but since it is Christmas Eve I thought this "Santa Radar" would be fitting. Plus, we love maps around here. Enjoy!
This from KCBS/KCAL:
LOS ANGELES (CBS) ―
The alleged "Newlywed Bandits," believed to be responsible for five Los Angeles-area bank robberies in a three-week span, pleaded not guilty on Monday to charges of bank robbery and conspiracy.Rayceana Racheal Rocha, 22, and Paul Harlen Meyercamp Jr., 26, entered their pleas before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert Block. At one point, like a couple in love, Rocha and Meyercamp whispered to each other, looked into each other's eyes and smiled.
The unmarried couple, christened "the Newlywed Bandits" by an FBI agent who watched them on surveillance tapes, were arrested last month when they allegedly robbed a pedestrian and carjacked a vehicle in Las Vegas, then led police on a pursuit.
Rocha, who was driving, crashed the vehicle and was taken into custody. Meyercamp was caught following a brief foot pursuit, the FBI said.
Between Oct. 18 and Nov. 8, they allegedly robbed a Wells Fargo branch in La Habra, East West Bank branches in El Monte and Diamond Bar, a Bank of America in Duarte and a Downey Savings in Claremont.
Rocha is a student at Rio Hondo Community College in Whittier and Meyercamp is on parole, according to the FBI.
View Larger Map
COVINA — Police have identified an Azusa man who was killed in a stabbing Sunday that left another man seriously injured.Paul Brizuela, 20, was pronounced dead at an area hospital shortly after the incident, Covina police Sgt. David Foster said Sunday in a written release.Matthew Flores, 19, of West Covina was recovering from his injuries in “serious but stable” condition, Foster said. Both men suffered multiple stab wounds, he said.The attack occurred just after midnight behind a convalescent home in the 300 block of West Rowland Street, police said.
No suspect description was available, and no motive was known, said Covina police Sgt. Dave Povero.
The investigation is ongoing, Povero added. Anyone with information should contact the Covina Police Department at (626) 858-4413.
This from the Riverside Press Enterprise:
MURRIETA - For 14 years, Santa and his helpers sprinkled Christmas goodwill and holiday magic in Murrieta neighborhoods with nary a "bah humbug" or a Grinchy sneer -- until Wednesday.
Two teenage volunteers dressed as Rudolph and Frosty said they were roughed up while dancing and singing for an audience of 300. Their names were not released. Rudolph suffered an injured back and neck, while Frosty has a sprained wrist.
Murrieta police are asking for the public's help in what is dubbed the "Rudolph Caper."
This comment was posted a few hours ago below an entry about Maria Hicks.
You might remember Hicks, a Pico Rivera grandmother, was murdered by taggers when she stopped to confront them earlier this year. Here's what a former Pico resident had to say:
My wife's family lived a block away from where this tragedy happened in Pico. We moved to Arizona in 2006 because there was to much gang violence in north Pico. The Brown Authority gang in that area was fighting with Pico Viejo for territory . I got robbed at gun point in front of her house the day before Christmas just one block from where this grandmother got shot. They tried to car jack me but I left the keys in the house. Cops told me they were probably trying to find a car to do a drive by to get even for a shooting of their guys a few days before. For a second I thought I was going to die. I am a honest, working, family guy with no gang ties who was getting ready to celebrate my first Christmas with my baby girl and wife. These gang members have no regard for the citizens who value life. I never will forget what happened to me and hope and pray for the family of this tragedy. I grew up in San Gabriel and know all to well about Sangra. U Could not go to Smith park to swim or play basketball because gang activity there. I remember they robbed my friend for his Nike shoes! My advice for people living in these areas is to move away. As hard as it sounds just try, because the gangs violence will never end. Where I live now in AZ has had 1 homicide (it was domestic incident ) in 2007 and prior to that had not had one in 3 years plus has no gangs. All the violence in Arizona is mostly concentrated to downtown Phoenix region and Mesa. The police here do a great job preventing crime. The suburbs are pretty safe unlike those in San Gabriel Valley. Every city in the SGV has multiple gangs, from Alhambra/Padadena/west cov./B.P/Arcadia/Pomona..u name it. It is amazing to be able to play with your kids in the park with out having to worry about anything. Or to go for a walk in the evening and not have to worry about every car that passes by. To drive around the neighborhoods and not see tagging. The only downside is it is hot in the summer. I wish you all in SGV good luck and god bless
This from Brian Day:
Arcadia PD Log Enrty
Sunday, Dec. 9
A residential burglary occurred in the 1000 block of Mayflower between 11:08 p.m. and 11:10 p.m. A resident came home and found a male Hispanic suspect exit the rear of the garage. She confronted the suspect, and he apologized and returned a GPS system that he had just stolen from a vehicle in the garage.
A man died today while in the custody of the Alhambra Police Department, authorities said.
Sheriff’s detectives were sent to the police station to assist in the investigation, according to the Sheriff’s
Headquarters Bureau.
The man was not identified. His death was reported about 9:15 a.m. Friday.
No further information was available.
Sheriff's deputies and state parole agents waited outside a La Puente home for eight hours Thursday before busting in with tear gas and discovering their wanted man had escaped.
When officers on scene were asked who they were looking for, none knew exactly .... hmmmm
That said, today we have a name and a picture. You are looking at La Puente resident Jesus Ramiro Talamantes, DOB 2/15/72.
He's on the lam.
BTW, that's AC/DC playing "Shoot to Thrill" in the background.
It also says Paris Hilton didn't get preferential treatment. The report, released this afternoon by the OIR goes into a wide variety of other topics regarding the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.
UPDATE #1 3:44 p.m. 12/20/07
It's funny how we focus on the celebrity aspects of a report like this and miss some of the more important details. A whole section of the report deals with in custody deaths and while it is entirely without names...there is a curious entry on page 24:
C A S E A 76-year old inmate went down in a dorm at North County Correctional Facility and
subsequently died. He had been seated on his lower bunk and, when he tried to get up,
he fell and struck his head on the floor. While being treated for the resulting laceration,
he complained of chest pains and was transported by ambulance to the hospital, where
he was treated for various ailments, went into cardiac arrest, and died three days later.
An NCCF sergeant interviewed several inmates assigned to bunks near the deceased
inmate’s. All said that the inmate had been in poor health, and none noted anything
unusual about the fall or the circumstances surrounding it. Even though the facts
suggested this elderly inmate died from natural causes, because the deceased inmate had
gained notoriety for his role in the murder of an LAPD officer decades earlier, both
Homicide and IAB investigators responded to the scene to insure there was no suspicious
activity. The on-call OIR attorney likewise rolled out. In the end, the coroner determined
the inmate had died of natural causes. However, the case did raise the issue of
whether this particular inmate, given his age and background, should have been housed
in a more appropriate location than a general population dormitory. Housing older
inmates is an ongoing problem for the jails, and the LASD used this case as an occasion
to renew its efforts to create specialized “old man” dorms or housing units.
Obviously this refers to Jimmy Lee Smith, one of the infamous Onion Field Killers.
I plan on linking to the complete report in a post later today.
UPDATE #2 4:57 p.m. 12-20-07
And....here is the report.
Arcadia police arrested a 44-year-old high-risk sex offender Thursday morning on a parole violation. Apparently, Paul Jeffrey Cricks, of Arcadia, didn't charge his electronic ankle bracelet – which has a global positioning system attached to it – and essentially disappeared from parole officers for a few days.
When the state agents realized Wednesday they weren't getting a signal from the bracelet, they went to Cricks' house in the 600 block of Baldwin Avenue. After breaking down the door, they found personal items, the bracelet's charger but no Cricks.
Further investigation found the offender had skipped out on work the last couple of days. He works at a tire shop in La Puente, according to police.
It wasn't until Thursday morning that Cricks was finally found. Arcadia officers, following up on the case, went back to Cricks' home. This time he was there, along with a small amount of narcotics, according to Arcadia police Lt. Larry Goodman.
So where was this offender – previously convicted of annoying or molesting children and indecent exposure – hiding out the last few days? No one seems to know.
All police have to say is the fact that Cricks was MIA was a major "public safety" concern. Really? But now he's in custody, so I guess the game of Where's Waldo? .... er.... Where's Cricks? is over.
Crime scene readers might recognize the address in the post below as the mobile home park where three members of a family killed by street racers lived. The copy comes from an email sent by Lt. Ralph Batres of the El Monte PD. As for the long faces in the shot....Maybe Santa's fatigued. He's been to a lot of places in the past few days.
On 12-19-07, Wed., at 5:30 p.m., due to the efforts of Agent Eric Sanchez of the El Monte Police Department and Manager Diana Doo of the Brookside Country Club located at 12700 Elliott in El Monte, approximately 200 children were able to receive gifts with Santa Claus. As you can see, the children wore their “happy faces” to welcome Santa.
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department organized a sting operation, dubbed Operation Red Light, with other area law enforcement agencies to disrupt prostitution operations advertising on the internet Dec. 19, 2007. L.A. County Sheriff's deputies arrested and cited this prostitution suspect at the Monrovia Oak Tree Inn after calling the
Internet advertisement of Unlimited Escorts.
This photo was taken by staffer Leo Jarzomb.
Reporter Jennifer McLain tagged along with the cops on the sting for two days. In all 37 arrests were made in area hotels, underground brothels and massage parlors. McLain's story will run in Thursday's paper.
The city of Albuquerque is suing a company that hired two traveling salesmen accused of killing an elderly couple and stealing their camera.
One of the two salesmen charged in the case was identified last week as Travis Rowley, a native of Glendora, who has had some run-ins with police in Orange County.
Here's a brief that appeared in the Santa Fe New Mexican this week:
Salesmen's company sued
ALBUQUERQUE — A Nevada company that employed two traveling magazine salesmen accused of killing an elderly Albuquerque couple this month is being sued by the city of Albuquerque.
The lawsuit accuses Integrity Program of not conducting background checks on the two men or otherwise doing an adequate job of ensuring they would not be a danger to the city. The city is seeking punitive damages and a restraining order that would prevent the company from doing business in Albuquerque.
"All we have to show is that (Integrity Program) violated our ordinance," said Assistant City Attorney Greg Wheeler.
Integrity Program did not immediately return messages seeking comment.
The company employed Travis Rowley, 23, and Michael Lee, 21, to sell magazine subscriptions in the Albuquerque area. The two men are charged with murder in the Dec. 4 deaths of Tak Yi, 79, and his wife, Pung Yi, 69. The couple was found beaten to death in their home.
Rowley and Lee remain in the Metropolitan Detention Center in lieu of $2 million cash bond each.
I don't know how we missed this, but here's a Pasadena item from Discovery News that ran in November but's sort of related to a story from earlier this week. Of course the Chippies didn't need any fancy stuff, all it took was the suspect ramming his Nissan Titan into a mountainside at 70 mph. The item begins below:
Nov. 29, 2007 -- The same microwave radiation that reheats pizza can be used to fry the electrical systems in cars, stopping them dead in their tracks.
Emitted from a rooftop device, the radiation could be used by law enforcement officers to put an end to dangerous car chases or by military personnel as a non-lethal way of disabling vehicles that get too close for comfort.
"The idea is to warn an automobile some distance away from a high-value target like a military barrack or a communication center. If they don't comply, you just zap them and it prevents them from coming closer," said James Tatoian, CEO of Eureka Aerospace in Pasadena, Calif.
This from MTV.com:
On the heels of the announcement that Britney Spears' 16-year-old sister, Jamie Lynn, is pregnant with her first child comes word that the parenting book due for release in the spring from the girls' mom, Lynne Spears, has been delayed. People magazine reports that the book has been put on indefinite hold by publisher Thomas Nelson, which puts out inspirational books and Bibles.
"The book is delayed indefinitely. It's delayed, not cancelled," a spokesperson told the magazine. The spokesperson said the book, which Publisher's Weekly had described as "Lynne Spears' personal story of raising high-profile children while coming from a low-profile Louisiana community," was actually put on hold last week, but declined to say whether the focus of the book will change in light of Jamie Lynn's pregnancy announcement, or if the decision was a result of the news about the latest scandal to rock the family.
In October, Spears and Thomas Nelson announced the deal for the book, which was slated to come out on Mother's Day under the title "Pop Culture Mom: A Real Story of Fame and Family in a Tabloid World." At the time, a publishing rep told Us that it would be a parenting book "that's going to have faith elements to it." A manuscript was expected by this month
I especially like the line that reads: "raising high-profile children while coming from a low-profile Louisiana community."
What is that a new euphemism for trailer park?
.
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children is highlighting the missing grandchildren of U.S. Rep Gary Miller on its home page.
Here's the poster seeking information. The picture of Jennifer Dejongh/Jennifer Lopez comes from the site.
Jude Lopez, Jennifer's father, sent me this information with some comments of his own:
I noticed that pictures of my daughter and her kids appear on the Missing and Exploited Children. I don’t think they should be there because my daughter had custody when she failed to take the children for a visit. If you look at the other pictures, those issues are a lot more serious. There must be some rules about having your picture displayed on this website. Maybe it has to do with possible harm. Last week the poster indicated that there was a federal warrant. I called and asked for the warrant number and they said they couldn’t give it out. Now they changed it to a felony warrant. I don’t know if that is true. I believe Gary Miller had his hand in this especially since the photos used were the passport photos. I don’t believe, even with all your resources, you could get those photos.
He's back from Minnesota but Isaac Campbell was not ready Tuesday to enter a plea in the state's case against him.
Here's the story from PSN's Molly Okeon:
Isaac Campbell, 32, appeared in Alhambra Superior Court on Tuesday, wearing a blue jumpsuit and glasses.
Campbell is charged in the death of Liya “Jessie” Lu, 31, of San Gabriel. He was being held in lieu of $1.2 million bail.
Campbell is also facing two marijuana charges in a separate case.
Lu, who was studying to be a nurse at Pasadena City College, was working two part-time jobs as a Kaiser Permanente Hospital medical assistant and a secretary in a law office. She had moved from China to the United States nine years ago.
Lu’s body was found in the 1700 block of South Baldwin Avenue in Arcadia in September.
She was reported missing to the San Gabriel Police Department on Aug. 11 after she failed to return from a visit to Campbell’s apartment, officials said.
Authorities said Campbell was called in for questioning briefly, then fled to Minnesota, from which he was extradited.
Before leaving town, Campbell asked a friend who owned the Arcadia home at which Lu’s body was found to store several items, including a vehicle and a trash can, officials said.
The friend discovered Lu’s body sealed in a plastic garbage bag and covered with kitty litter in the trash can, officials said.
Lu’s parents, Yongtai Lu and Shilan Guo, who are in the U.S. from China for the court proceedings, were present at the hearing, along with friends of their daughter’s.
According to her cousin, Jeremy Zhou a San Gabriel resident, Lu has two brothers, 40-year-old Jun and 36-year-old Gang, both of whom live in China.
The Wrong Slip Bandit is back. And he's still targeting Bank of the West.
Sources tell Crime Scene that the bandit pictured on the left hit the Bank of the West on Durfee Road in South El Monte Monday afternoon.
He took an undisclosed amount of cash. But no doubt he had another picture taken for the inevitable court case. We profiled this guy in July, about the time the FBI unveiled their LA bank robbery website.
Here's a story from Whittier reporter Ruby Gonzales that ran back then:
He fills out a withdrawal slip, stands in line and even subjects himself to being questioned by tellers. But the only true thing on the slip is the amount he wants.
Dubbed "the Wrong Slip Bandit" by the FBI, this robber has struck Bank of the West locations in Pico Rivera, Commerce, Downey and South El Monte within the past three months. Authorities want help in finding him before he makes another unauthorized withdrawal.
"He pretends to be there for bank business," said FBI Special Agent Erik Arbuthnot.
Arbuthnot said the bandit's only robbed Bank of the West and always uses a savings withdrawal slip.
Because the bandit writes a bogus account number on the slip, tellers have asked him for identification and even an address. Sometimes he has to make his intentions clear to the victims.
After being asked for an ID, the bandit finally showed his hand.
"He said,`You don't understand. You're getting robbed. I have a gun. Give me the money,"' Arbuthnot said.
Yesterday I speculated that Ruben Smith, the Azusa man who led police on a wild chase across the San Gabriel Valley, was a pool man.
Guess what? Ruben Smith is a pool man.
That stuff in the back of his truck is chemicals and tools used to clean pools.
This from correspondent Brian Day:
Mayor Lino Donato of Poteet, Texas (pop. 3,500), said that he would remain in office despite his inability to set foot in city hall. That building is less than 1,000 feet from a youth recreation center and therefore off-limits to Donato, who was adjudicated a sex offender in October.
Ruben Smith, 41, of Azusa leads CHP officers on a high speed pursuit east along the San Bernardino Freeway during rush hour.
The pursuit, which began in Azusa, went down the 605, out the 60 up the 5, back on the 10 flipping through the bus terminal in El Monte, back out on the 10, in search of the 710 extension at Valley boulevard, back on the 10 again and up the 605 over on the 210 and up into the Azusa Canyon.
Rueben flipped his Nissan Titan pickup and was taken by helicopter to LA County USC Medical center late Monday, officials said.
The picture here comes from staff photog Raul Roa.