Monthly Archives: October 2016

Woman injured, man arrested following Pasadena hit-and-run

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PASADENA >> A 75-year-old man turned himself in to police after striking and injuring a woman with his car and fleeing the scene on Friday afternoon, police said.
Carlos Sanchez of Los Angeles was ultimately booked on suspicion of felony hit-and-run in connection with the collision, which took place about 5 p.m. at Manzanita Avenue and Orange Grove Boulevard, Pasadena police Lt. Mark Goodman said.
He struck the 51-year-old pedestrian with his vehicle and left the scene, the lieutenant said.
The woman was taken to a hospital for treatment of head injuries, he said. An update on her condition was not available.
As officers were still investigating the crash about two hours later, Sanchez showed up at the Pasadena Police Department.
“He was identified as the driver of the vehicle involved in the collision and was arrested without incident for felony hit and run,” Goodman said.
According to Los Angeles County booking records, Sanchez was released from custody Friday night pending his initial court appearance after posting $20,000 bail.

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Fast food worker shot to death during botched robbery in El Monte

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EL MONTE >> A masked gunman shot and killed a 25-year-old fast food worker during what was believed to be a botched robbery at an El Monte Jack in the Box restaurant late Friday, authorities said.
The deadly shooting took place about 7:30 p.m. at the chain restaurant at 9220 Flair Drive, according to El Monte police and Los Angeles County sheriff’s officials, who are assisting El Monte police in the investigation.
The suspect, who fled empty-handed following the apparent robbery attempt, remained at large Saturday.
1023_nws_sgt-l-restaurant2Authorities withheld the identity of the victim pending positive identification and notification of his family, Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner Investigator Joyce Kato said.
“An armed, masked male entered the business and immediately jumped over the front service counter, where the victim was standing, in an apparent armed robbery attempt,” Deputy Ryan Rouzan of the sheriff’s Information Bureau said in a written statement.
“The suspect turned toward the victim and fired at least one shot, which struck the victim in the upper torso. The suspect immediately jumped back over the counter and fled the location,” Rouzan said.
The gunman was last seen running north from the restaurant. No suspect description was available.
El Monte police arrived first on the scene and administered first aid before paramedics took over treatment, officials said. The wounded man was taken to an area hospital where he was pronounced dead.
A sign affixed to the door of the restaurant where the victim worked on Saturday indicated the businesses would be closed until Monday.
“RIP Juan. 2 Corinthians 5:8. Home with Jesus,” was handwritten on the sign.
The King James Version of the scripture reads, “We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.”
Anyone with information can reach the sheriff’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. Tips may also be submitted anonymously online to L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.

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Diamond Bar couple fatally stabbed inside their home identified

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DIAMOND BAR >> Coroner’s officials have identified a married couple found stabbed to death in their Diamond Bar home on Thursday as homicide detectives continued seeking their killer or killers.
Cheng Long Wang, 60, and his wife Mei Chu Chung, 57, died in the double stabbing at the couple’s home in the 3300 block of Bent Twig Lane, Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner Investigator Joyce Kato said. Autopsies were pending.
One of the couple’s children, who is away at college, asked a friend to check on his parents after not hearing from them for a while, Lt. John Corina of the Los Angeles County sheriff’s Homicide Bureau said.
The friend went to the home, discovered the bodies and called 911, officials said.
Wand and Chung were found in separate rooms of the home, and both had been stabbed multiple times, Corina said. There were signs of a struggle inside the home.
There were no obvious signs of robbery, however investigators were still working to determine whether anything was missing from the home.
A motive in the double-homicide was unknown, and the weapon used in the killings has not been found, officials said.
Neighbors said the couple had lived in the neighborhood for more than a decade. Neighbor Zeng Liao said Wang as a retired doctor of Chinese medicine, and Chung was an art teacher.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the Sheriff’s Department’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. Anonymous tipsters can call L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
— Staff writer Ruby Gonzales contributed to this report.

PHOTO by Watchara Phomicinda

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DEVELOPING: Man fatally shot during possible restaurant robbery in El Monte

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EL MONTE >> A man died after being shot during what was initially reported as a robbery at an El Monte fast food restaurant on Friday night, authorities said.
The fatal shooting was first reported as a robbery with a person down just before 8 p.m. at a Jack in the Box restaurant at 9220 Flair Drive, according to El Monte police and Los Angeles County sheriff’s officials, who are assisting El Monte police in the homicide investigation.
A victim, described only as a man, was taken to a hospital where he succumbed to his injuries, Deputy Jeffrey Gordon of the sheriff’s Information Bureau said in a written statement.
No suspects were in custody, and no further details were available as detectives from the Sheriff’s Homicide Bureau continued their investigation late Friday, officials said.
Anyone with information can reach the sheriff’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. Tips may also be submitted anonymously online to L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.

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Whittier police launch mental evaluation team

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WHITTIER >> A new mental evaluation team dedicated to dealing with community members with mental health issues has taken to the streets of Whittier and Santa Fe Springs, officials said.
The Whittier Mental Evaluation Team, comprised of one sworn police officer and once licensed clinician, began operating on Sept. 20, Whittier police officials said in a written statement.
The team was formed in partnership with the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health, “ to address the growing need for mental health services in our community,” according to the statement.
“This cooperative effort revolves around a co-response model that includes a licensed clinical social worker — provided by the LACDMH — and a sworn police officer provided by the Whittier Police Department to aid our patrol officers in handling calls for service involving persons who may be suffering from a mental health crisis or be in need of social services as well as building cooperative relationships with other service providers in the Whittier area,” according to the statement.
The team is currently made up of Officer Devin McClure and DMH Clinician Geraldine “Geri” Zuniga.
They patrol on weekdays, but can be called upon to assist at other times as well, Lt. Bryan Ellis said. In the month that they’ve been on-duty, the team has been “very active,” he added.
In addition to responding to “critical in-progress” incidents, the team will also work to address other mental health-related issues such as homeless outreach.
“Additionally, WMET will provide extensive follow up and case management for individuals with chronic mental illness, substance abuse, and homelessness,” according to the statement. “ By addressing these concerns on a regular basis, WMET can help to alleviate the burden placed on patrol resources and provide expert assistance to those in need.”

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Online transaction ends with robbery in Monrovia

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MONROVIA >> A man arranged to sell a gold necklace online before being robbed of the jewelry by a group of men outside a Monrovia Taco Bell late Thursday, police said.
The crime took place just before 10:30 p.m. outside the restaurant, 140 W. Huntington Drive, Monrovia police Lt. Heath Harvey said.
The victim had used the online marketplace “OfferUp” to advertise a gold necklace for sale and a purported buyer responded to the ad, the lieutenant said. Both parties agreed to meet outside the restaurant to complete the transaction.
“The buyer looked at the necklace, asked the victims some questions and negotiated a price,” the lieutenant said. They settled on $100.
But before any money changed hands, three accomplices of the purported buyer then approached and joined in the conversation, Harvey said.
One of the accomplices pulled what the victim believed to be a shotgun-shaped pellet gun from his coat and all four ran off together with the necklace, Harvey said. The victim suffered no injuries.
Detailed suspect descriptions were not available.

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These 2 SoCal women lead effort to pay tribute to fallen law enforcement officers throughout the U.S.

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www.honorbands.net/
For more than a year, two former Long Beach police officers have made it their mission to honor each and every law enforcement officer killed in the line of duty in the Unites States by outfitting each member of the officers’ departments with personalized black “mourning bands” to be worn over their badges as a sign of respect to their departed colleagues.
badge1-thumbIn a sight that’s become all too common in recent months, whenever a law enforcement officer falls in the line of duty, fellow officers traditionally don black mourning bands over their badges in tribute. HonorBands co-founder Laura Tartaglione of Monrovia said. The bands are generally nondescript, plain black bands of black elastic worn across the front of a badge.
Starting from their kitchens and working by hand, Tartaglione and partner Julia Walling of Los Alamitos set out to make sure that every fallen officer, deputy or trooper was honored with personalized mourning bands, featuring the badge number, name, or other personal aspects of the fallen officer, Tartaglione said. The home-based endeavor grew quickly, and Tartaglione and Walling soon rented out a space and equipment in Los Alamitos to create the more than 70,000 bands they’ve made since and sent throughout the country, free of charge, to honor fallen officers from coast to coast.
“This is our way of helping that department that’s crushed,” Tartaglione said. “It cannot bring an officer back, but this is a way to honor that man or woman one last time. It’s a beautiful tribute. It’s the last thing you get to do to honor that person.”
…FULL STORY

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Armed parolee from Diamond Bar arrested after standoff at Pasadena motel

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PASADENA >> Police arrested a parolee from Diamond Bar armed with a loaded handgun after he holed-up inside a Pasadena motel room on Wednesday night, officials said.
Jaime Garcia Jr., 28, was booked on suspicion of being a convicted felon in possession of a loaded handgun following his arrest about 10:15 p.m. at a motel in the 2000 block of East Colorado Boulevard, according to Pasadena police officials and Los Angeles County booking records.
Officers first responded to the motel about 7:20 p.m. after staff reported a guest who had failed to pay his bill, refused to check and locked staff out of the motel room, Pasadena police Lt. John Luna said.
When officers tried to speak with him, he closed the door on them as well, the lieutenant said.
After spending about an hour negotiating with the man for about an hour, officers persuaded him to surrender, Luna said.
Inside his motel room, police found a loaded handgun, he said. Garcia is on active parole for a prior robbery conviction.
Garcia was being held without bail pending his initial court appearance, records show.

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Couple found stabbed to death inside Diamond Bar home

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DIAMOND BAR >> Detectives are investigating the deaths of a man and woman whose bodies were discovered inside their Diamond Bar home early Thursday as a possible double-homicide, officials said.
The deaths, initially reported by sheriff’s officials as stabbings, were reported just before 9:45 a.m. at a home in the 3300 block of Bent Twig Lane, Los Angeles County sheriff’s officials said in a written statement.
Both the man and woman, described as an Asian couple in their 50s or 60s, were pronounced dead at the scene, Lt. John Corina of the Los Angeles County sheriff’s Homicide Bureau said. Coroner’s officials had yet to identify the man and woman.
One of the couple’s children, who are away at college, became concerned after not hearing from the couple for a while, the lieutenant said.
The child contacted a friend and asked the friend to check on the man and woman, Corina said. It was then that the friend discovered the bodies.
“We’re treating it as (double-) murder right now. It doesn’t look like a murder-suicide,” Corina said. “That’s the way we’re going to treat it until we learn otherwise.”
But he added that the investigation remained in its early stages, and nothing had been ruled out.
Though initially described by officials as a double-stabbing, Corina said he could not confirm how the couple died.
“It certainly doesn’t look like a natural death or deaths,” he said. “We don’t know the why and how of how they were killed.”
There were no signs the home had been ransacked.
“It doesn’t appear to be robbery or burglary,” Corina said.
Detectives continued speaking with neighbors and family members to learn about the couple and determine when they were last been seen alive, he added.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the Sheriff’s Department’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. Anonymous tipsters can call L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
— Staff writers Ruby Gonzales and Brian Day contributed to this report.

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Man shot while sitting in parked car with girlfriend in Santa Fe Springs

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SANTA FE SPRINGS >> A man suffered wounds to his head and back after attackers inside two different cars opened fire on him as he sat in a parked car with his girlfriend near a park early Sunday, officials said.
The victim, a 20-year-old Whittier man, was expected to survive his injuries following the shooting, which took place about 1:10 a.m. in the 13200 block of Lakeland Ave., in front of Amelia Mayberry Park on the border between Santa Fe Springs and South Whittier, Whittier police Lt. Bryan Ellis said.
The man and his girlfriend were sitting in a parked car when two dark-colored cars pulled up next to them.
“There was a little bit of dialogue between them,” Ellis said. “The vehicles that pulled up fired several rounds.”
Bullets struck the victim in his head and back, Ellis said. He was taken to a hospital where he was listed in stable condition.
Ellis said the victim’s girlfriend was unhurt.
The suspect vehicles were described only as a possible Dodge Dart with three people inside and a possible Honda Civic.
It was unclear what was said before the attackers opened fire, and the motive in the shooting remained under investigation, Ellis said.
Anyone with information can reach the Whittier Police Department, which provides police services to Santa Fe Springs, at 562-567-9200. Tips may also be submitted anonymously to L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.

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