Monrovia Police: Bear in the Kitchen; IRS Scam; Not His Van; Texting to Punching; Dueling Videos; Etc.

[Monrovia Police activities from the Police Department's Neighborhood Watch Report for April 30 - May 3. - Brad Haugaard]

Following are the weekend’s highlighted issues and events.

Fraud/Elder Fiduciary Abuse
April 30 at 9:52 a.m., an officer was dispatched to a bank in the 200 block of South Myrtle regarding fraud and elder fiduciary abuse. An elderly couple received a fraudulent scam call from the 209 area code. The caller claimed to be the IRS and demanded taxes due. The husband attempted to call the IRS, but could not reach anyone to get verification. In fear of getting in trouble, he went to the bank to withdraw money to send to the suspects. While the husband was on his way to the bank, the wife contacted the Monrovia Police Department and asked for police intervention. An officer arrived just as the husband was exiting the bank and was able to advise him he was being defrauded. He redeposited the $4,000, and while the officer was still with the victim, the suspect called again. The officer answered the phone and attempted a ruse to get the suspect to advise on where to send the money; however, he would only talk to the victim. There was no loss, but the emotional impact on this elderly couple was significant. The investigation is continuing.

Stolen Vehicle Recovered
April 30 at 1:46 p.m., a resident in the 300 block of South Violet called police after a resident moved out of an apartment, leaving behind what everyone thought was his van. They contacted him, and he said the van was not his. He thought it belonged to another resident. A computer check of the van revealed it was a stolen vehicle taken from Arcadia back in 2013. All of the residents had assumed the van belonged to someone in the apartment complex, so they had not called police to report it. The vehicle was recovered.

Vandalism/Battery
April 30 at 3:21 p.m., an officer responded to the corner of Central and Myrtle regarding a vandalism and battery incident. A driver was sitting at a green light, texting in his SUV. The driver of a large cement truck in back of him honked at him to go, and the impeding driver held up his middle finger at the truck driver. The truck driver exited his vehicle, and at some point, the cement truck driver was punched in the mouth by the SUV driver. The cement truck driver then smashed the windows of the SUV. The order of events could not be determined and there were no independent witnesses. Statements and pictures were taken and a verified complaint report for the appropriate violations will be submitted to the District Attorney’s Office.

Warrant – Suspect Arrested
April 30 at 9:20 p.m., an officer was dispatched to the 400 block of South Myrtle on the report of a suspicious person in area. After contacting the subject, the officer discovered the subject had an outstanding warrant issued by the Long Beach Police Department. The suspect was arrested for the warrant.

Bear Incident
May 1 at 3:39 p.m., a resident in the 700 block of North Canyon was upstairs and heard noises downstairs. He went down and saw a bear in his kitchen. He was able to get out of the house and call police. The Fish and Wildlife Warden was notified and began to respond. Officers arrived first and observed the bear coming out of the house. No tags were observed on the bear and it was persuaded back into the foothills without further incident.

Stolen Vehicle
May 2 at 9:28 a.m., a stolen vehicle was reported in the 300 block of Highland. The vehicle stolen is a silver, 2007, Toyota Tacoma, pickup truck. The vehicle was stolen between 2:00 and 9:30 a.m. There was no sign of forced entry. The investigation is continuing

Hit and Run Traffic Collision
May 2 at 10:08 p.m., a hit and run traffic collision occurred in the 200 block of North Myrtle. The suspect vehicle was a black Audi. The vehicle side swiped two parked cars. Witnesses saw the car heading west on Foothill after the collision and wrote down the license plate number. Upon investigation, the registered owner was contacted and said he had let a friend borrow his car. The officer arranged to speak to the friend, who eventually admitted to being involved in the collision and said he was unfamiliar with the vehicle, a stick shift, and he lost control of the car. A verified complaint was filed with the District Attorney’s Office for vehicle hit and run charges.

Stolen Vehicle
May 2 at 10:32 a.m., dispatch received a call reporting a stolen vehicle in the 100 block of North Myrtle. The vehicle stolen is a white, 2005 Ford Escape. The vehicle was locked and there was no sign of forced entry. The investigation is continuing.

Stolen Vehicle
May 2 at 11:13 a.m., an officer was dispatched to the 1600 block of South Mountain regarding a stolen vehicle. The vehicle stolen is a white, 1985, Toyota, pickup truck. The vehicle was stolen between 7:30 and 8:30 a.m. There was no sign of forced entry. The investigation is continuing.

Domestic Violence – Suspect Arrested
May 3 at 6:21 a.m., an officer responded to the area of 605 Freeway at Lower Azusa Road regarding a domestic violence incident. Officers from Irwindale Police Department had stopped a vehicle on the freeway, and the two subjects in the vehicle were arguing. The driver had bruising and swelling to her eye. She said she was punched in the face by her female partner, who was the other subject in the vehicle. The incident occurred in the 100 block of West Cherry in Monrovia. A Monrovia officer arrived and confirmed that domestic violence did in fact occur in Monrovia's jurisdiction. He arrested the suspect and took her into custody.

Petty Theft From Vehicles
May 3 at 7:30 a.m., dispatch received a call reporting several vehicles parked in the 500 block of Fano Street with there doors open and no one in the vehicles. Officers arrived and located four vehicles that appeared ransacked and burglarized. After speaking with the registered owners of the vehicles, it was determined that all of the vehicles had been left unlocked and various items were stolen from the vehicles. The investigation is continuing.

Battery – Suspects Arrested
May 3 at 2:34 p.m., dispatch received a call from a business in the 300 block of West Huntington. The employee reported that two male adult subjects came into the store and were arguing with the female manager of the store. The subjects decided to leave the store, and the female manager followed them out of the store and continued to argue with one of them outside of the store. Once outside, the male subject removed his phone and began to video tape the manager. She became more upset and slapped his phone out of his hand. She then removed her phone and began to video tape him. He then slapped her phone out of her hand and she responded by pepper spraying him. Both subjects desired prosecution. Both subjects were arrested and received a citation to appear in court on battery charges.

Commercial Burglary – Suspect Arrested
May 3 at 3:21 p.m., a business in the 500 block of West Huntington called police to report a male subject that had stolen items from inside the store. The loss prevention officer was chasing the subject through the parking lot. Police were given a suspect description and responded to the area. The suspect was located and detained near the corner of Huntington and Mayflower. The suspect was arrested and received a citation to appear in court on burglary charges.

Injury Traffic Collision
May 3 at 5:13 p.m., officers responded to the area of Stedman and Greystone regarding a traffic collision. A driver struck a parked car and lost control of the vehicle. The vehicle then rolled, landed on its hood and slid to a stop. Both occupants, mother and teenage son, exited the vehicle on their own and sustained only minor injuries. Alcohol was not a factor in the collision. Officers responded quickly and controlled the scene.

Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol – Suspect Arrested
May 4 at 1:05 a.m., a possible drunk driver was reported exiting the 210 Freeway at Mountain. An officer in the area of Foothill and Alta Vista saw the driver swerving in the roadway and stopped the vehicle for further investigation. The driver was determined to be driving under the influence. The subject was arrested and held for sobering.

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