[Monrovia Police activities from the Police Department's Neighborhood Watch Report for November 6-9 . - Brad Haugaard]Following are the weekend’s highlighted issues and events.
Battery on a Peace Officer / Delaying & Obstructing a Peace Officer – Suspect Arrested On November 6 at 1:00 p.m., officers were dispatched to a residence in the 400 block of Monrovista regarding a 16-year-old male who was refusing to go to school and causing a disturbance. When officers arrived, the juvenile refused to obey the officers’ commands and became combative with them. The subject pushed one of the officers and a struggle ensued. The other officer deployed the Taser. The juvenile was arrested and taken into custody without further incident. No one was injured.
Vehicle Burglary On November 7 at 6:41 a.m., a vehicle burglary was reported in the 900 block of West Huntington. The vehicle was parked in a hotel parking lot and sometime during the night, the suspect(s) forced entry through the rear lift gate. The suspects took the third row seats, luggage, and camera lenses from the SUV. The investigation is continuing.
Fraud / Possession of a Controlled Substance / Possession of Drug Paraphernalia – Five Suspects Arrested On November 7 at 9:59 p.m., officers went to a motel in the 700 block of West Huntington regarding subjects occupying a motel room using possible fraudulent identification. The officers went to the room and contacted the subjects. They found five subjects inside, two of whom were attempting to hide possible contraband under the bed. Several of the subjects were in possession of false identification cards and had warrants for their arrest, and one subject was in possession of methamphetamine. The room was determined to be rented using false identification information.
Officers searched the room and found evidence of a credit card fraud/forgery operation, including over 100 modified, altered, and blank debit cards, credit cards, and gift cards, as well as an embossing machine, two credit card stripe readers, and machinery for effacing credit cards. The officers also found two vehicle titles with the information bleached out, drug paraphernalia, several computers, cell phones, and USB drives. All five suspects were arrested. During the booking process, officers discovered several of them had given false information regarding their identities; the additional offence was added to their charges.
Vandalism On November 8, several incidents of vandalism were reported throughout the city. The suspect used black spray paint to write graffiti on homes, vehicles, walls, etc. The suspect has not yet been identified. The Special Enforcement Team officers have been notified. The investigation is continuing.
Stolen Bicycle – Suspect Arrested On November 8 at 2:30 p.m., police were alerted to a stolen bicycle taken from the area of Alta Vista and Huntington. The bicycle and suspect were located in the 100 block of West Cypress. The bicycle was recovered and the suspect was arrested. The suspect was taken into custody and housed pending his court appearance date.
Warrant – Suspect Arrested On November 8 at 5:30 p.m., officers were dispatched to a business parking lot in the 100 block of West Foothill regarding a hit and run traffic collision. The accident was minor, and the victim did not desire prosecution for the hit and run. An officer had located the suspect driving in the area of Huntington and Myrtle and stopped him. The driver was found to have two no-bail warrants and was arrested for the warrants only.
Vandalism – Suspect Arrested On November 9 at 12:25 a.m., a citizen called police to report a male subject vandalizing their neighbor’s residence in the 200 block of Madeline. Officers responded to the area to search for the suspect. An extensive area search was conducted and the suspect was located. The witness positively identified the suspect. The reporting party will be contacted and informed of the Monrovia Police Departments Graffiti Bounty program; they will be rewarded with $100.00 for reporting this vandalism incident, which led to the arrest of the suspect.
Petty Theft On November 9 at 7:23 p.m., a petty theft of a cell phone was reported at a business in the 100 block of West Foothill. The victim reported the suspect had just stolen her cell phone off a table inside of the business and fled the location, heading west towards Linwood and into an apartment complex. Officers arrived and searched the area, but were not able to locate the suspect. The investigation is continuing.
West San Gabriel Valley Anti-Crime Task Force Apprehends Suspect Wanted for Kidnapping and Rape On Tuesday, November 4, 2014, members of the West San Gabriel Valley Anti-Crime Task Force apprehended suspect Benny Torres in East Los Angeles. Torres was wanted by the Monterey Park Police Department for kidnapping and rape. The Task Force, comprised of detectives from Pasadena, South Pasadena, Arcadia, Monrovia, El Monte, Monterey Park, and Los Angeles County Probation, conducted an exhaustive week-long search for Torres. The Task Force observed Torres in East Los Angeles and he was taken into custody without incident. He is currently being held in custody on a 2.35 million dollar bail.
