Recently in Fish Wrap Category

Staff Writer Ruby Gonzales had a busy evening on the night crime desk:

SOUTH EL MONTE -- Sheriff's officials announced a $100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the suspects in a July 7 South El Monte robbery and to the recovery of the more than $1 million stolen.
The reward is being offered in conjunction with Lloyds of London. The payment will be in proportion to the amount of money recovered.
Investigators believe the robbers were familiar with the operation and floor plan of Commonwealth International Inc.
The company at 12356 Barringer St. stores cash to be distributed to ATMs throughout the region.
The robbery took place just after 7 p.m. on July 7. Detectives said an unknown number of armed suspects forced their way through the ceiling, slid down a rope and surprised the employees.
Deputies said the employees were blindfolded.
After taking control of the business, the suspects loaded the money into a waiting vehicle, according to Sheriff's Lt. Chris Brackpool.
He said there is no security video of the robbery because the suspects also stole the video recording device.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Sheriff's Major Crimes Bureau at 562-946-7893.

PASADENA -- A woman was wounded when shooting broke out at a neighborhood Wednesday afternoon.
Pasadena police said the woman, who was shot in the knee, may not have been the intended target. The shooter eluded capture.
Lt. Pete Hettema said callers reported shots being fired on Dearborn Street, east of Summit Avenue at 4:45 p.m.
Police were also told that someone may have been injured at the scene.
Hettema said witnesses heard an argument before the incident. But police aren't sure if the dispute was related to the shooting and haven't pinned down who were arguing, according to the lieutenant.
Police closed down the block and searched for the suspect. He wasn't found.
Hettema said the woman was taken to a hospital with an injury that wasn't life-threatening.
The suspect was only described as a Latino in his 20s wearing a black shirt and black shorts.

PICO RIVERA -- A pedestrian was accosted by an armed man Wednesday who took his cellphone and headphones.
Sheriff's Lt. Brian Yanagi said the victim was walking on Passons Boulevard near Holbrook Street when a man approached and pointed a gun at him.
Yanagi said the robber grabbed the phone and the headphones from the victim and ran.
The suspect was described as a Latino in his 20s, 5 feet 11 inches tall, about 160 pounds with short hair. He was wearing a blue long-sleeved shirt and black pants.

WEST COVINA -- A man wearing a surgical mask, sunglasses and a beanie broke into a store display case and stole jewelry on Wednesday.
Police were told the jewelry was worth thousands.
The masked thief showed up at the Kmart at 3:45 p.m., took out a pair of bolt cutters and snipped the cable tying a jewelry display case, according to West Covina police Lt. Alan Henley.
After swiping the jewelry, the suspect walked out of the store at 730 S. Orange Avenue and was seen getting into a gray compact car.

ALHAMBRA -- Police arrested two men and a woman plus recovered possible stolen property after pulling over a car seen at a burglary on Wednesday.
The suspects' names, ages and city of residences weren't available Wednesday night.
Alhambra police Sgt. Kean Oda said the investigation is ongoing. He added that detectives are also checking if the suspects are tied to other burglaries.
A residential burglary was reported about 1:30 p.m. in the 1100 block of Azalea Drive.
Oda said a witness gave descriptions of a suspect and a vehicle seen leaving the area.
An officer later spotted a vehicle matching the description of the getaway car on the westbound 10 Freeway. He pulled it over.
The vehicle stopped at Westmont Drive and Valley Boulevard and one of the passengers ran.
Police detained the remaining two occupants and later found their quarry near the 710 Freeway and Valley Boulevard.
Oda said officers also discovered what appear to be stolen items in the car.

Deputies shoot a burg suspect in Azusa;

It's been a wild weekend so far in the San Gabriel Valley to say the least. Here's some highlights:

* Sheriff's deputies shot and killed a meat cleaver-wielding burglary suspect in Rosemead late Saturday.

* Sheriff's deputies shot, but did not injur, a suspect who allegedly rammed a patrol car with another vehicle Saturday in Monterey Park.

* A 13-year-old girl was allegedly abuucted by her uncle in Whittier late Friday, and was found by officials late Saturday in San Dimas.

* A man was arrested Friday in connection with an ambush on two Azusa police officers.

* A man and woman escaped to brushes with death in Rosemead Friday after they were ejected from their car, then one of them was grazed by a commuter train.

 

Fish wrap for the afternoon:

Obama picks a Supreme.

California Supreme Court takes a stand on Prop. 8

Jury selection begins in Clark Rockefeller case, who is he?

 

Nine people have been shot in the San Gabriel Valley this weekend, two of them fatally.

In Rosemead, a 15-year-old boy and a 27-year-old man were killed early Saturday when two attackers opened fire on a party at a hotel. Three other men were wounded in the shooting.

In La Puente, four men were wounded in a shooting by two self-proclaimed gang members early Sunday as they congregated with others outside a liquor store.

Our neighbor to the west also saw a shooting over the weekend, as a 27-year-old man was wounded by an armed assailant in Pasadena late Friday.

Here's some stories we've been following this week:

* ROSEMEAD -- Deputies responding Sunday morning to a family disturbance shot and killed a machete-wielding man after he threatened them with that weapon and a baseball bat.
The incident occurred about 11 a.m. in the 3500 block of Temple City Boulevard, Los Angeles County sheriff's Deputy Byron Ward said.
Ernesto Castaneda, 22, of Rosemead was pronounced dead at an undisclosed hospital a short time later, authorities said.

* WALNUT -- Officials said a young man and woman were lucky to be alive Saturday after their convertible flipped over several times on Valley Boulevard.
The driver of the Porsche Boxster, 22-year-old Tze Shyu of Irvine, was flown to Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center with major injuries, California Highway Patrol Officer Sam Corder said.
His passenger, 24-year-old Karen Fung of El Monte, was hospitalized with minor injuries, he said.
"These two are very, very lucky to still be alive today, considering the amount of damage to that car," Corder said.
The crash was reported about 6:30 p.m. on eastbound Valley Boulevard near Brea Canyon Road in an unincorporated county area near Walnut, Los Angeles County sheriff's Sgt. Bruce Lang said.

* AZUSA -- Police arrested three teenagers late Friday after they allegedly shot a bystander during a fight, authorities said.
A 15-year-old Duarte boy suspected of being the gunman was booked on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon and taken to Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall in Downey, Azusa police Lt. Paul Dennis said.
Two 15-year-old boys from Duarte were also arrested in connection with the incident and were released to their parents with a written promise to appear in court, Dennis said.
The woman wounded in the attack was believed to be an innocent bystander, the lieutenant said.
"It appears she was just emptying out her trash," the he said.

* POMONA -- Two people were killed Saturday morning after their small plane crashed in the hills above Pomona, authorities said.
The victims were described as a man and a woman. They were not identified Saturday night.
The plane, a single-engine Piper Cherokee, crashed into a hillside in the 2600 block of Pomona Boulevard, Federal Aviation Administration officials said.
The crash occurred just three minutes after the 1979 Piper model PA-28-236 left Brackett Airfield in La Verne at 11:12 a.m., according to recorded information from FAA spokesman Ian Gregor.

* ALTADENA - Two men dressed in police-type uniforms barged into a home Thursday and handcuffed a man before stealing about $2,000 in cash and other items.
Two men knocked on the door of a home in the 3400 block of Fair Oaks Avenue about 8:50 p.m., authorities said. They were wearing dark-colored police officer-type uniforms, gun belts and were armed with handguns, authorities said. One man was wearing a baseball cap with the word "police"on the front.
Authorities said the 42-year-old man at the home first believed the men were police officers but became concerned when he did not see a marked police car on the street and noticed the men were wearing tennis shoes.
The men then forced the victim into a bedroom, handcuffed him and demanded at gunpoint to know the location of the man's safe. The victim's arms and legs were tied up and socks were placed in his mouth.

* ARCADIA -- A woman was robbed of her purse Wednesday in what police believe may be the latest in a string of crimes carried out by two serial robbers.
The latest crime was reported about 8:30 p.m. Wednesday in the 500 block of Las Tunas Drive, Arcadia police Lt. Larry Goodman said.
A woman was approached from behind by a man who grabbed her purse and fled to a nearby car with a waiting driver, Goodman said.
"The suspect and vehicle description are similar to the other recent strong-arm robberies in town," police said in a written statement.
Two other robberies with similar suspect and vehicle descriptions were reported March 7, Goodman said, though they have not been definitively linked to each other or Wednesday's robbery.

 

Octomom update: She's out of the hospital and news crews are fleeing toward her home in Whittier. State wants to know how she got so pregnant..

Landlord wants rent from massacre victim. Local media picked this one up...interesting take on Fox 11 this a.m. -- reporter led with "This story, if accurate, ..."

Another teen attacked in Baldwin Park..

Jerry Brown speaks at the Quiet Canon. He thinks federal bailout money should be applied to criminal justice programs in California.

Suspect hits deputy with vehicle in Rosemead after dispute over iPOD.

Woman has her purse taken as she stands in front of home.

I've come up with a solution to the state budget crisis.

It's simple really and it's a practice that's been in place for centuries.

Make the state Legislature do what the Jesuits do, take three vows in addition to the oath of office.

Here they are:

A vow of chastity.

A vow of poverty.

A vow of obedience.

Three simple rules. Of course that would take courage, and, quite honestly, that's been gone from Sacramento for some time.

As of Sunday, our state ran out of money, out of credit and out of options. Our income tax refunds will be nothing more than dishonorable IOUs. Some state workers will be forced to go without pay for two days a month as a way of helping California save dinero.

Meanwhile our legislators will fly back and forth to Sacramento on your dime and drive around in taxpayer-funded automobiles. Some will cheat on their wives and husbands, while others will strap on the feed bag and feast on the finest foods lobbyists and fundraisers can put together.

Their bloated and ineffectual staffs will continue to draw a paycheck, while their constituents and the businesses they "represent" continue to lose jobs and hemorrhage dollars.

That's where the vows come in to play.

We need a legislature that is obedient to the people of this state. We need a legislature that is chaste when it comes to dealing with the lobbyists and special interests that run Sacramento.

We need a legislature that understands poverty and how tax-and-fee-and-spend scams only hurt the poor and those of us still fortunate enough to have a job.

Unfortunately we have none of that. Instead we have a crisis. Our state is paralyzed by a Sacramento lifestyle that has imposed too many regulations, too many taxes, and too many false promises.

Fortunately there seems to be more and more anger with Sacramento among the voters. At the newspaper we're seeing it in e-mails from readers who've recently lost their jobs.

One of those readers, Mike Serrano, who lives in state Assemblyman Anthony Portantino's district, wrote about losing his job, getting no help from the state's Employment Development Department and nothing but attitude from the staff working for his elected representatives.

"I wanted some information about training benefits. After trying to reach someone for nearly two weeks, I contacted the offices of my two elected state officials, Anthony Portantino and (state Sen.) Carol Liu," Serrano wrote.

"To say their response was disappointing would be an understatement ... these people simply don't understand, they work for us and their job performance is lousy."

Portantino's spokesman Eduardo Martinez was unfamiliar with Serrano's case, but said staff in the office is trained to deal with constituent problems.

I didn't get a response from Liu's office, and checking the senator's Web site it becomes pretty clear her staff is not too interested in hearing from any of us.

I say don't re-elect any of them until they vow to start approaching their vocation like Jesuits.

Here's some stories we've been following over the weekend:

ARCADIA -- An unknown attacker shot and wounded a man Saturday, authorities said.
Police responded to a call reporting a gunshot victim about 2 a.m. in front of the Coccoon Gentleman's Club, 1580 Clark Street, when they found the victim lying in the street suffering from multiple gunshot wounds, Arcadia police Lt. Roy Nakamura said.

WHITTIER -- Two men stabbed another man to death Saturday in what authorities believe may have been a gang-related attack.
Joseph Magdaleno, 21, of Whittier died shortly after the attack, said Cheryl MacWillie, a lieutenant with the Los Angeles County Department of Coroner.
The incident occurred about 5:45 p.m. as Magdaleno was walking in the 12700 block of Wardman Avenue with his 16-year-old girlfriend, Whittier police Officer Jason Zuhlke said in a written statement.

LA HABRA -- A Fullerton woman was killed early Sunday in a crash officials blamed on an impaired driver.
April Junhee Whang, 26, died at the scene of the crash, which occurred about 1:30 a.m. on Imperial Highway at Beach Boulevard, La Habra police said in a written statement.
Brittany Deanne Schuetz, 20, of Irvine was hospitalized for treatment of injuries and was being held on suspicion of felony driving under the influence and vehicular manslaughter, officials said.

INDUSTRY -- A 16-year-old boy was shot and killed Sunday at a gas station in an unincorporated county area near Industry, officials said.
Jason Ledesma died at the scene of the shooting, which occurred about 3 p.m. on Valley Boulevard near Alderton Avenue, Los Angeles County sheriff's officials said.
Ledesma was shot several times in the chest and back and was pronounced dead at the scene, Los Angeles County Fire Department Capt. James Lile said.

INDUSTRY -- A passenger was killed and another man was arrested Sunday when a car went off the side of the roadway, officials said.
The victim, initially described only as a Asian man in his early 20s, was pronounced dead at the scene, California Highway Patrol Officer Jose Nuñez said.
Another man, whose name was not immediately available, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, Nunez said.
The incident occurred about 6 p.m. on Shepherd Street, just south of Rose Hills Road, he said.

EL MONTE -- Deputies arrested a man Sunday after he allegedly carried out a home invasion robbery of an elderly couple, carjacked a truck, robbed a person in El Monte and then led officials on a chase, authorities said.
The suspect, whose name was not immediately available, was shot with a Taser gun and arrested at the end of the chase, Los Angeles County sheriff's Sgt. Abel Moreno said.

A report in USA Today notes that the FBI claims criminal gangs are responsible for 80 percent of our nation's crime. Here's the story.

No Chargers in Industry this year, at least that's a what a report in the San Diego Business Journal claims.

Local soldier Sgt. Hy Thai, of Monterey Park is profiled on News Blaze, for his work in Iraq.

Detroit cops slow to respond to reports of frozen body in abandoned warehouse, according to the Detroit News and the Associated Press, which cites the indifference of cops there as part of the city's overall problem.

LASO unveils new technology in the pursuit of criminals.

MONTEBELLO -- A man was shot in the arm in the 900 block of Greenwood Avenue about 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, police officials said.

LOS ANGELES -- A state appellate court panel Tuesday rejected an appeal from an El Monte man sentenced to nearly 34 years behind bars for leading police on a high-speed chase that ended with a crash that killed a woman and her 19-year-old daughter.

 

also, here's a couple things that might need to be followed:

Temple City -- a traffic collision may have occurred Tuesday night, Lt. O Shea will have details.

The Vatican and unveiled its official YouTube channel.

Here's how the site describes itself:

This channel offers news coverage of the main activities of the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI and of relevant Vatican events.

It is updated daily.

Video images are produced by Centro Televisio Vaticano (CTV), texts by Vatican Radio (RV) and CTV.

This video-news presents the Catholic Churchs position regarding the principal issues of the world today.

Links give access to the full and official texts of cited documents.

Previously about the only Vatican related material on YouTube was probably this George Harrison video:

 

DEL TACO ROBBED

COVINA - A man escaped on foot with an undisclosed amount of cash after he robbed a fast-food restaurant at gunpoint early Monday morning, according to police.

Employees from a Del Taco located at 400 S Citrus Avenue reported that a masked man armed with a handgun ordered them on the ground, removed cash from the register and fled on foot, according to Covina police Lt. John Curley.

MOTORCYCLE DEATHS UP

LOS ANGELES COUNTY -- The rate of people dying in Los Angeles County motorcycle crashes has almost doubled over the past eight years, according to data from the California Highway Patrol.

Countywide, 96 people died in motorcycle collisions in 2008 compared to 58 deaths in 2001, according to provisional statistics from the CHP.

In 2007, 85 people died in motorcycle collisions.

BAR SHOOTOUT INJURES ONE

WHITTIER - One man was injured in a shooting that occurred after an argument at The Hide Out Bar in Whittier Saturday night, authorities said.

A 44-year-old man was shot once in the shoulder with a handgun after an argument between two groups of patrons outside the bar at the 13000 block of Telegraph Road around 10 p.m., said Sgt. Ralph Gama of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's Norwalk station.

The victim drove himself to Presbyterian Intercommunity Hospital. He is expected to survive, Gama said.

VANDALS HIT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

WHITTIER - Vandals broke into a classroom at a Whittier elementary school over the weekend and sprayed the classroom with a fire extinguisher, according to officials.

The break-in was reported Sunday evening at 5 p.m. at Lake Marie School in Whittier, said Sgt. Ralph Gama of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's Norwalk station.

BODY FOUND IN ANGELES NATIONAL FOREST

ANGELES NATIONAL FOREST - Officials worked to recover a body found Sunday in the forest north of La Crescenta, authorities said.

The body was found more than 120 feet below a bridge near Big Tujunga Canyon Road, about 10 miles north of the road's origin in Sunland, Los Angeles County sheriff's Lt. Angela Shepherd said.

Officials from the United States Forestry Department discovered the body about 3:30 p.m. and contacted sheriff's officials, Shepherd said.