[Monrovia Police activities from the Police Department's Neighborhood Watch Report for Oct. 20-26, 2011 - Brad Haugaard]
During the last seven-day period, the Police Department handled 583 service events, resulting in 114 investigations. Following are the last week's highlighted issues and events:
Public Demonstration
On October 21, the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) conducted a demonstration in the 600 block of West Huntington protesting Trader Joe's. There were approximately two-hundred supporters in attendance. The demonstration began at 12:00 noon, and at 12:30 p.m., they walked through the Huntington Oaks shopping center and proceeded to the Trader Joe's Corporate Office in the 800 block of South Shamrock. They held a rally there for nearly an hour. At that time, the group was approached by officers from the police department and instructed to leave per Penal Code Section 602(a) at the request of Trader Joe's security, and the group eventually dispersed. The remainder of the time they stayed on the church grounds, where they had permission to stand.
Grand Theft Investigation
On October 23 at 12:16 p.m., a female subject called police and reported that she had just been robbed of her cell phone. When officers arrived, she stated that she had advertised her IPhone on Craigslist for sale. She met with the potential buyer at Mayflower and Huntington. When she handed the cell phone to the subject, he took it and ran east across Mayflower and out of sight. Officers responded and checked the area, but met with negative results.
Driving Under the Influence - Suspect Arrested
On October 23 at 3:26 p.m., officers responded to the report of a male adult drinking alcohol while driving through a business parking lot in the 300 block of West Huntington. Officers arrived and arrested the driver for driving under the influence and his vehicle was stored.
Commercial Burglary
On October 23 at 11:04 p.m., a car with three occupants pulled up near a gas station at Shamrock and Huntington. A male subject ran into the store and took a case of beer and ran directly out to the waiting car. The clerk obtained the license plate of the car. An officer went to the address the vehicle was registered to and waited until the car returned. The officer was able to detain the suspect, and the stolen property was located. The witness positively identified the suspect and the vehicle. Based on investigation, only one suspect was charged and held.
Vandalism
On October 24 at 10:16 a.m., officers were dispatched to the 1300 block of South Primrose regarding vandalism. They arrived and found gang graffiti on the sidewalk at the northeast corner of Primrose and Montana, and on the limit line on the street. The graffiti was written in black spray paint. Graffiti removal was notified.
Vandalism
On October 24 at 4:34 p.m., additional gang graffiti was reported in the 1100 block of South Primrose. Graffiti removal was notified.
Residential Burglary
On October 25 at 6:00 a.m., a resident in the 800 block of California left their house. When they returned at 5:00 p.m., they found their home had been burglarized. The suspect gained entry by climbing through an unlocked second floor window. Two laptop computers and thumb drives were stolen. Investigation continuing.
Vehicle Burglary
On October 25 at 6:26 a.m., an employee of a restaurant in the 500 block of West Huntington reported that someone had broken into a customer's vehicle. An officer responded and found a rear window had been shattered. A green backpack containing documents and a stethoscope was taken. No witnesses. Investigation continuing.
Residential Burglary
On October 25 at 9:54 a.m., officers responded to an apartment in the 700 block of Monterey regarding a burglary. The victim had left an hour earlier and returned to find a bedroom window open and a laptop missing. The suspect(s) removed the window screen and forced the lock to gain entry. Investigation continuing.
Vehicle Burglary
On October 25 at 1:17 p.m., an officer was dispatched to the intersection of Alta Vista and Chestnut on the report of a vehicle burglary. The victim said his vehicle was broken into the day before, between 4:00 and 5:00 p.m., but he was unable to report it then. The suspect(s) broke the driver side window and removed a clipboard from the front seat which contained $200 in cash. No witnesses were located. Investigation continuing.
Illegal Fire Setting
On October 25 at 3:57 p.m., Monrovia Fire Department advised they were responding to a small fire on the tracks in the 1400 block of South Alamitas. Officers responded to assist. It was determined that someone set fire to some trash. The fire was put out. A similar fire was reported at the same location a week prior. No witnesses were located, but indications are that it may be school kids that are causing these fires after school. Extra patrol will continue in the area. Investigation continuing.
Burglary
On October 26 at 9:28 a.m., an officer responded to a business in the 500 block of West Huntington regarding a theft that had just occurred. When the officer arrived, the reporting party told him a female subject who had been wandering in the store walked out and the anti-theft alarm went off. The reporting party saw the female get into a vehicle and leave, but was able to obtain the license plate number. A check of the video and the sales floor indicated the female had taken five Android eReaders valued at $1150 dollars. Investigation continuing.
Shots Heard
On October 26 at 6:39 p.m., dispatch received numerous calls of shots heard over a wide area of the north end of town. The majority of calls seemed to indicate the shooting occurred somewhere in the area of 400 to 600 blocks of Norumbega. Pasadena's helicopter responded and searched the area with ground units. Officers searched along the wash and door-to-door in the area for over an hour, but were unable to locate the source of the gunfire. No witnesses or suspects were located. Investigation continuing.
Residential Burglary
On October 26 at 8:30 a.m., a resident who lives in the 400 block of North Primrose left her home. When she returned at 10:15 p.m., she found someone had forced her back door open. It appears that nothing was stolen. The suspect may have been scared off when a motion detector lamp activated when the door was forced open. Investigation continuing.
