New Santa Ana | Category Archives: Los Angeles County

L.A. man could face the death penalty in 7-Eleven robbery and murder spree in So. California

Posted on July 18, 2022 by Editor Posted in Crime, Los Angeles County, OCDA, Santa Ana 3 Comments

SANTA ANA, Calif. – A 20-year-old Los Angeles man will be charged with three felony counts of special circumstances murder in connection with a robbery spree targeting convenience stores that left at least three dead and another three people wounded across several Southern California counties. The man’s 44-year-old neighbor will be charged with felonies in connection with several of the robberies that occurred in Orange County on July 11, 2022.

Who will you vote for in the OC 2nd Supervisorial District?

Authorities across Southern California are continuing to investigate numerous other crimes believed to be connected to the pair, including an attempted murder at a Riverside 7-Eleven and robberies in Los Angeles, San Bernardino, and Riverside counties.

Malik Patt, 20, of Los Angeles, will be charged with three felony counts of murder with the special circumstance of multiple murder, two counts of attempted murder with the personal discharge of a firearm causing injury, three felony counts of robbery with an enhancement of personal use of a firearm, and one felony count of carjacking while personally armed, Patt will also be charged with two additional special circumstance enhancements of murder in the commission of a robbery and three enhancements for personal discharge of a firearm causing death.

Patt could face the death penalty if convicted. He is currently being held without bail.

Patt’s neighbor, Jason Payne, 44, of Los Angeles, has been charged with three felony counts of robbery and one felony count of attempted robbery in connection with robberies that occurred in Santa Ana, La Habra and Brea and an attempted robbery that occurred on July 11, 2022.

He faces a maximum sentence of approximately 9 ½ years in state prison if convicted. Patt and Payne are scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday, July 19, 2022.

“This is a stone-cold serial killer who executed innocent people,” said Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer. “Every time he walked into another donut shop or convenience store, the clerk behind the cash register had no idea the death and destruction that he had already left in his path – and that they could be his next target. He could have taken the money and left them alive, but instead he chose to kill whoever and whenever he wanted. And he would have kept killing if it weren’t for the amazing work of law enforcement to identify these individuals and arrest them so quickly. This is law enforcement at its best – working together to ensure that violent criminals are taken off our streets and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

California state law allows serial murders that occurred in other counties to be consolidated and prosecuted in a single county in the interest of judicial efficiency and to prevent victims from having to endure multiple court proceedings in different jurisdictions.

Patt and Payne were arrested in Los Angeles on Friday, July 15 by Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF)’s Orange County Violent Crime Task Force. Over the last five years, the ATF Task Force, which includes ATF agents, as well as Fullerton and Brea police officers and investigators from the Orange County District Attorney’s AB 109 task force , has investigated and arrested individuals and crews committing commercial robbery series, smash-and-grab robberies, home invasion robberies, commercial burglaries, as well as firearm and narcotic offenses that occur within or otherwise impact Orange County. The task force also works regularly with the Santa Ana Police Department.

The following crimes will be prosecuted in Orange County:

On July 9, 2022 Patt is accused of shooting a sleeping homeless man in the head in North Hills in Los Angeles County after robbing a 7-Eleven. The man died from his injury. The Los Angeles County Coroner has not yet released the victim’s identity pending notification of next of kin.

On July 11, 2022, at 3:03 a.m. Patt is accused of robbing a Yum Yum Donuts store in the 2400 block of N. Tustin Avenue in Santa Ana at gunpoint.

Twenty minutes later, at 3:23 a.m. Patt is accused of shooting and killing 24-year-old Matthew Rule after trying to walk into a Santa Ana 7-Eleven in the 300 block of E. 17th Street, but finding it locked. Rule was shot in the head after Patt confronted him and another man in the parking lot.

Thirty-one minutes later, at 3:54 a.m., Patt is accused of robbing 40-year-old Matt Hirsch, a clerk at a 7-Eleven in the 100 block of West Lambert Road in Brea. After robbing Hirsh, Patt is accused of shooting the clerk in the head, killing him.

At 4:55 a.m., Patt is accused of robbing a 7-Eleven store in the 300 block of E. Whittier Blvd. in La Habra and then shooting a man sitting in a vehicle outside of the store. The man was shot in the face, but survived. Patt is also accused of shooting and wounding the 7-Eleven clerk who came out of the store.

Following the shootings, Patt is accused of carjacking a resident leaving his home and then later abandoning the stolen vehicle.

Payne will be charged in connection with the robberies that occurred in Santa Ana, Brea, and La Habra and the attempted robbery in Santa Ana.

“On behalf of the Brea Police Department, we would like to offer our sincere thanks to District Attorney Todd Spitzer and the men and women in his office for their diligence in filing the appropriate charges for the subjects in custody,” said Brea Police Chief Adam Hawley. “We will continue to work closely with them moving forward for the prosecution. Through these collaborative efforts with the District Attorney’s office and the other involved agencies, I believe we will bring justice to the victims and victims’ families. In closing, we again offer our deepest condolences to all those affected by these tragedies. We are with you.”

Senior Deputy District Attorney Seton Hunt of the Homicide Unit is prosecuting this case.

Two suspects have been arrested for this week’s shooting spree at So. California 7/11 stores

Posted on July 15, 2022 by Editor Posted in Crime, Los Angeles County, OCDA, Orange County, Riverside County, Santa Ana, SAPD Leave a comment

Two suspects have been arrested in connection with a number of shootings and robberies at several 7-Eleven stores in Orange County, Los Angeles County and the Inland Empire, according to the OCDA.

The pair was arrested on Friday at 1:10 p.m. at 1900 W. 23rd Street in Los Angeles. The men were identified as Malike Patt, 20, and Jason Payne, 44. Patt is the primary suspect. Both men are Los Angeles residents.

The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and a task force that included the Brea, Santa Ana and Fullerton police departments, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and the OCDA’s Office made the arrests. Both suspects were transported and booked at the Santa Ana Police Department and they will likely be prosecuted in Orange County.

Patt was booked into jail in Santa Ana. Payne was being treated for unspecified injuries before booking. Patt was believed to be the person wearing the hooded sweatshirt who was photographed during several robberies, police said.

The police do not yet know what motivated Patt to attack so many victims at area 7-Eleven stores or what role Payne played in these crimes.

Additional violent armed robberies and a murder in the City of Los Angeles are also being investigated with a possible link to this crime series.

The attacks left two victims dead while several others were injured. One victim, Russell Browning, 60, was shot in the mouth as he sat in his car, resulting in the loss of several teeth. Browning, a truck driver, had purchased milk and doughnuts at the store and was heading to work.

Who will you vote for in the OC 2nd Supervisorial District?

Here in Santa Ana, 24-year-old Matthew Rule was shot dead in a 7-Eleven parking lot with a gunshot wound to the upper body, at 3:20 a.m. on Tuesday.

The 7-Eleven company offered a $100,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the suspect.

“It is through the hard, diligent, and professional investigative work by our Homicide Unit, along with the invaluable collaborative efforts with all our partner allied agencies, that made these arrests possible. As our condolences go out to all the victims and survivors impacted by these violent crimes, our communities can rest a little easier today knowing that we have resolution to this regional crime series,” said Santa Ana Police Chief David Valentin.

Did the same suspect shoot victims at four 7-Eleven stores in Southern California today?

Posted on July 11, 2022 by Editor Posted in Crime, Los Angeles County, Riverside County, Santa Ana Leave a comment

A series of shootings took place today at 7-Eleven stores in Orange County and Riverside, resulting in the death of a store clerk in Brea, a 24-year-old man in Santa Ana and injured three others in La Habra and Riverside. The violent crimes coincided with the 95th birthday of 7-Eleven, a day the chain celebrated by giving out free small Slurpee drinks to customers with the 7-Eleven rewards app.

The Brea Police Department released photos of the man suspected of fatally shooting a store clerk at a 7-Eleven store in Brea.

Who will you vote for in the OC 2nd Supervisorial District?

Police detectives said the robbery suspect in three of the shootings appears to be the same suspect. A Riverside police official also said that the incident in their city appeared to be similar to the attacks in Orange County.

The Riverside shooting went down at about 1:50 a.m. at the 7-Eleven at 5102 La Sierra Ave. A male suspect showed his gun to the store clerk then robbed the store. For unknown reasons the suspect decided to shoot a customer in his 40’s as he fled from the store. That victim is now in grave condition with a serious head wound.

A while after the Riverside shooting, at about 3:25 a.m., a 24-year-old man identified as Matthew Rule, was shot and killed at the 7-Eleven located at the 300 block of East 17th Street during what police said was an attempted robbery.

Less than an hour later another shooting occurred at a 7-Eleven store only 15 miles away, in Brea, northwest of Brea Boulevard and Lambert Road. A store clerk was shot and killed in what Brea police said was a robbery that turned into a homicide.

The killing spree was not over yet. At about 4:55 a.m., not far from Brea, in La Habra, there was another armed robbery at the 7-Eleven at 381 E. Whittier Blvd. Responding police officers found two victims with gunshot wounds who were taken to a hospital.

An L.A. man was arrested for sexually assaulting an Irvine woman in an elevator

Posted on July 4, 2022 by Editor Posted in Cochino Alert, Crime, Irvine, Los Angeles County Leave a comment

On Sunday, the Irvine Police Department (IPD) arrested a 26-year-old man for felony sexual battery.

On June 25, 2022, officers responded to a report of a sexual battery and physical assault that occurred at Extra Storage, located at 17 Shield.

Who will you vote for in the OC 2nd Supervisorial District?

The female victim reported she was waiting for the elevator and as the doors opened, two males exited. One of the males looked at her and decided to re-enter the elevator after the victim. As the doors closed, the male became fixated on her. He reached his arm out toward her chest and sexually battered her. She pushed him away and told him to stop. He began to aggressively grab at her chest so she fought him off. He punched her multiple times, causing visible injuries. She was able to escape the elevator on the first floor and separate from him. He ran off and got into a moving truck parked nearby.

IPD Detectives followed up on several leads obtained during the initial investigation. The suspect, Rafael Cortez, of Los Angeles, was arrested at his residence without incident. Cortez was employed by a moving company present at the location on the day of the assault.

He was transported to the Orange County Jail (OCJ) and booked on felony sexual battery, assault and battery, and false imprisonment.

If anyone has any information related to this investigation, please contact Detective Mudassar Mahmood at 949-724-7244.

The Anaheim Police recovered a stolen U-Haul and an elderly autistic victim who was in it

Posted on June 23, 2022 by Editor Posted in Anaheim, Crime, Los Angeles County Leave a comment

Anaheim Police officers were able to track down a stolen U-Haul truck and the elderly autistic man, James Blackwood, 63, who was in the truck when it was stolen on Wednesday.

On Wednesday, June 22, 2022, at around 2:20 p.m. , the Anaheim Police Department Communications Center received a call of a stolen vehicle in the 3100 block of W. Lincoln Ave. When officers arrived, they spoke with the reporting party, who explained a U-Haul truck they had rented had been stolen.

Additionally, officers learned a 63-year-old autistic male, with a mental age of a four-year-old, was inside the vehicle.

Who will you vote for in the OC 2nd Supervisorial District?

The U-Haul truck was entered into the stolen vehicle system and an Endangered Missing Advisory was issued for the missing elderly autistic adult.

Both Blackwood and the stolen U-Haul were located at the 3000 Block of S. La Brea Blvd. in Los Angeles.

Detectives from the Anaheim Police Department Robbery and Major Assault Detail worked on this case.

Victim Name: James Blackwood – 63 year old male – with mental age of 4 year old: 6’03”, 170 lbs, Gray Hair, Blue Eyes. Last Seen Wearing: Long Sleeved Tan Shirt and Blue Jeans. Plate on U-Haul: Arizona AE23468.

Monkeypox has arrived in Los Angeles County

Posted on June 2, 2022 by Editor Posted in Disease, Health and Medical, Los Angeles County, OC Health Care, Santa Ana Leave a comment

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health has confirmed the first presumptive case of monkeypox infection in Los Angeles County and is awaiting final confirmation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The patient is an adult resident who recently traveled and had a known close contact to a case. Although the patient is symptomatic, they are doing well and not hospitalized. They are isolated from others.

Public Health is continuing to investigate and conduct contact tracing and post-exposure prevention for close contacts.

The risk of monkeypox in the general population remains very low.

For more information, please visit: http://ph.lacounty.gov/media/Monkeypox/

About Monkeypox:

Monkeypox is a viral infection that can spread through contact with body fluids, monkeypox sores, or shared items (such as clothing and bedding) that have been contaminated with fluids or sores of a person with monkeypox. Monkeypox virus can also spread between people through saliva or respiratory droplets, typically between people in a close setting. Although monkeypox is not generally considered a sexually transmitted infection, it can be transmitted during sex through skin-to-skin and other intimate contact, regardless of gender or sexual orientation.

People with monkeypox sometimes develop a flu-like illness with fever, fatigue, and enlarged lymph nodes followed by a rash. In other instances, people just develop a rash with or without swollen lymph nodes, which can occur on the genitals. People usually develop monkeypox 7 to 14 days (and up to 21 days) after being exposed.

Most people with monkeypox have a mild illness that improves without treatment over 2 to 4 weeks. Treatment is supportive and focused on easing the symptoms of the illness. Monkeypox is contagious and can spread to others until scabs have fallen off and a new layer of skin has formed.

For more information on monkeypox, please see our FAQs: http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/acd/docs/MonkeypoxFAQ.pdf

What people should do:

To prevent the spread of monkeypox in Los Angeles County, we ask individuals to be aware of the risks and how monkeypox spreads. It is also important to remember that monkeypox can spread through sexual networks, as such, and until we learn more, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (Public Health) urges you to be vigilant. People who have symptoms of monkeypox, particularly the characteristic rash or lesions, should take the following steps:

Visit a medical provider for an evaluation

Cover the area of the rash with clothing
Wear a mask
Avoid skin-to-skin, or close contact with others

Per the CDC, these steps are particularly recommended for anyone who: 1) recently traveled to an area where monkeypox cases have been reported. You can find a list of the countries where monkeypox has been reported, here on the CDC website. 2) reports contact with a confirmed or suspected monkeypox case.

For any questions about monkeypox, Public Health recommends that you speak to your primary care provider. If you do not have a regular provider, call 2-1-1 for assistance. In addition, people without a regular provider that have developed a rash in the genital or perianal area, can access services at Public Health’s sexual health clinics. Please find a list of Public Health Centers that offer sexual health services here.

What healthcare providers should do:

Monkeypox infection should be considered for patients presenting with skin lesions, especially for those with a history of recent travel to an area with confirmed monkeypox cases. If lesions are characteristic for monkeypox, monkeypox should be considered even in the absence of known travel.
Those who have known close personal contact with people with monkeypox could potentially also be at risk for the disease.

Take note that some patients have had genital lesions and the rash may be hard to distinguish from syphilis, herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection, chancroid, varicella zoster, and other more common infections.
Isolate any patients suspected of having monkeypox in a single-person room, and ensure staff understand the importance of wearing appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) (gown, gloves, eye protection, and respirator) and that they wear it each time they are near suspected cases.
Use standard cleaning/disinfectants in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions.
Report all suspected monkeypox cases to Public Health immediately.
For healthcare professionals please refer to the following resource for consult and reporting: http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/clinicians/report/

Monkeypox update from the Orange County Health Care Agency

Several cases of Monkeypox have been detected in different states throughout the U.S., including California. OC residents and visitors who have recently traveled to an area where monkeypox was reported or had close contact with someone suspected to have monkeypox and have symptoms (flu-like symptoms and a rash) are advised to seek immediate medical attention.

The risk of Monkeypox in the general population is very low. While this virus is rare, it is a potentially serious viral illness that typically begins with flu-like illness and swelling of the lymph nodes and progresses to a widespread rash on the face and body.

Local clinicians who have any suspected cases are advised to immediately contact the HCA’s Communicable Disease Control Division. For additional information see the attached Health Advisory from the California Department of Public Health.

Street racer pleads guilty to hit and run accident that killed two men in Santa Ana

Posted on May 24, 2022 by Editor Posted in automobiles, Crime, Los Angeles County, OCDA, Santa Ana, Street Racing, Todd Spitzer Leave a comment

Damian Chavez, a 26-year-old man from Bellflower, pleaded guilty Monday to a hit-and-run vehicular manslaughter that killed two men in Santa Ana on April 20, 2019. He is scheduled to be sentenced on July 25.

Another driver who was racing with Chavez slammed his car into a tree at the 3200 block of South Bear Street at about 9:15 p.m. on April 20, 2019. The car quickly caught fire killing two occupants, 39-year-old Jerman Marquez and 29-year-old Richard Inda, who were pronounced dead at the scene.

Inda turned out to be the driver of the car that was destroyed and Marquez was a passenger in the stricken vehicle.

Chavez pleaded guilty to two counts of gross vehicular manslaughter and hit and run with permanent and serious injury and admitted sentencing enhancements for fleeing the scene of a vehicular manslaughter. Chavez

OCDA Todd Spitzer was peeved back in April of 2020 when an OC Court Commissioner lowered Chavez’s bail from $100,000 to $20,000, which resulted in Chavez gaining his release a few hours later.

The court commissioner said he lowered the bail due to the pandemic then proceeded to reject two appeals from the OCDA.

Spitzer, who is running for reelection in the June Primary this year, criticized the California program to lower bail for many defendants so as to reduce population in the jails. This was an attempt by county sheriff’s officials throughout California to limit the spread of COVID-19 in their jails.

The FBI is looking for an O.C. bank robbery suspect who wears black and white sneakers

Posted on March 7, 2022 by Editor Posted in Banking, Costa Mesa, Crime, FBI, Fullerton, Los Angeles County, Orange County Leave a comment

The FBI is looking for help from the public to identify a bank robber known as the “Black & White Sneaker Bandit,” due to the shoes he wears during robberies.

He is being sought for at least eight bank robberies in cities of Fullerton, Huntington Beach and Costa Mesa.

It is not clear when the robberies occurred and if the suspect got away with any money. Investigators also have not specified if the suspected robber was armed during the incidents.

Who do you support for the O.C. Board of Supervisors in District 2?

If you know this suspect’s identity, please call the FBI at 310-477-6565.

L.A. felon charged with trying to take an O.C. police officer’s gun while resisting arrest

Posted on February 10, 2022 by Editor Posted in Brea, Crime, Los Angeles County Leave a comment

SANTA ANA, Calif.- A Los Angeles felon with a long criminal history has been charged with ripping a Brea police officer’s gun out of his holster and taking the officer’s taser while the officer attempted to arrest him on a warrant Wednesday. A bystander who witnessed the struggle intervened to help the officer subdue the man and take him into custody.

Gilbert Antonio Villalba, 31, of Los Angeles has been charged with one felony count of attempted firearm removal from a peace officer, one felony count of battery on a peace officer, and one felony count of resisting and deterring an executive officer. He faces a maximum sentence of six years and eight months in state prison if convicted on all charges.

Villalba has a prior strike conviction under California’s three-strikes law for a second-degree robbery and a felony conviction for manufacturing an improvised gun.

He is scheduled to be arraigned in CJ1 today.

On February 2, 2022, at around 1:33 p.m., a Brea police officer noticed a blue Hyundai Elantra associated with a prior Brea police arrest and identified the driver, Villalba, as having an outstanding felony warrant.

The officer attempted to pull over the driver, who eventually pulled over in the parking lot of a Home Depot located on Harbor Boulevard in the city of La Habra. When the vehicle stopped, Villalba was wearing a camouflage tactical vest when he ran from his vehicle. The officer chased Villalba, who abruptly ran back to his vehicle, where his girlfriend had exited the vehicle and was standing next to it.

The officer grabbed Villalba to prevent him from getting back into his vehicle and Villalba is accused of kicking the officer off balance. During the struggle, Villalba is accused of grabbing the officer’s gun, ripping the holster from its base plate, leaving the holster dangling upside down. Villaba is accused of repeatedly grabbing the officer’s gun in an attempt to rip it from the holster.

Villalba is also accused of repeatedly telling his girlfriend to grab the officer’s gun. She refused.

“Here in Orange County, we do not tolerate violence of any kind and we support our police officers. If you attack a police officer, we are going to throw the book at you,” said Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said. “Violent assaults against police officers are on the rise across the country with 36 percent more police officers killed in gunfire last year compared to 2020. Traffic stops are especially dangerous for officers because they never know what kind of situation they are walking into.”

Deputy District Attorney Dustin Chupurdy of the Crimes Against Peace Officers’ Unit is prosecuting this case.

Suspects arrested in Anaheim this afternoon after a police pursuit that began in Lakewood

Posted on January 27, 2022 by Editor Posted in Anaheim, automobiles, Crime, Los Angeles County Leave a comment

A police pursuit that began in Los Angeles County ended in Anaheim this afternoon.

The pursuit began in the Lakewood area as L.A. County Sheriff’s deputies began to pursue a driver. The pursuit continued into Orange County.

At about 12:22 p.m., the suspect headed through a parking lot in Garden Grove in order to cut through traffic and he then continued onto surface streets in Anaheim.

But that tactic backfired on the suspect when he stopped in another parking lot and ended up getting boxed in by the Sheriff’s Department vehicles as deputies drew their weapons.

The driver and two passengers were taken into custody.

The deputies originally thought that the driver was under the influence, but we still do not know exactly what triggered the police pursuit.

The “Green Gaiter” bandit is wanted for robbing 14 banks in L.A. and O.C.

Posted on January 27, 2022 by Editor Posted in Banking, Costa Mesa, Crime, FBI, Los Angeles County, Orange County Leave a comment

An unidentified suspect who investigators believe conducted at least 14 bank robberies or attempts in Orange and Los Angeles Counties since October is being sought by the FBI and multiple law enforcement partners whose officers and detectives responded to the banks with agents in various cities.

The FBI has given the suspect the moniker, “Green Gaiter Bandit,” based on the green face/neck covering he can be seen wearing in some bank surveillance photos, which are being provided to the public. It should be noted that the suspect wears a variety of gaiters covering his neck and face in different banks on different dates, including a green one. He has also worn gaiters or a mask in other colors or designs as witnesses have described and as bank surveillance photos illustrate.

Over the past three months, the Green Gaiter Bandit is suspected in the following bank robberies or attempts, including on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve:

January 21, 2022, Wells Fargo 1396 North Rose Drive Placentia (attempt)
January 20, 2022, Wells Fargo 2170 Harbor Costa Mesa (attempt)
January 10, 2022, Chase 1310 West Artesia Gardena
January 7, 2022, U.S. Bank 25972 Muirlands Boulevard Mission Viejo
December 31, 2021, Wells Fargo 2300 Harbor Boulevard Costa Mesa
December 31, 2021, Chase 2121 Torrance Boulevard Torrance
December 30, 2021, Wells Fargo 9971 Adams Avenue Huntington Beach
December 24, 2021, Wells Fargo 2300 Harbor Boulevard Costa Mesa (attempt)
December 23, 2021, Wells Fargo 1403 Sartori Torrance
December 17, 2021, Wells Fargo 2970 Harbor Boulevard Costa Mesa
December 3, 2021, Chase 2970 Harbor Boulevard Costa Mesa
December 3, 2021, Chase 21502 Brookhurst Boulevard Huntington Beach (attempt)
October 30, 2021, Chase Bank 21502 Brookhurst Boulevard Huntington Beach
October 11, 2021, Union Bank 911 North Harbor Fullerton (attempt)

The Green Gaiter Bandit has been further identified as a white male, between 50 and 60 years old, approximately 6’0″ tall, with a medium to heavy build and gray hair. In some of the bank robberies, the suspect is wearing a tan jacket. He wears a variation of workwear-style clothing and, as noted, a variety of gaiters covering his neck and face, including a green one.

During the robberies, the suspect typically approaches a victim teller and either passes a note or makes a verbal demand, or both. In some cases, the suspect verbally demands cash or the “loose bills.” After receiving the cash or an attempt, the suspect has been seen fleeing the bank on foot.

If anyone has information about the identity or the whereabouts of the Green Gaiter Bandit, please contact law enforcement. In Los Angeles and Orange Counties, the FBI can be reached at (310) 477-6565.

This investigation is being conducted by the FBI; the Huntington Beach Police Department; the Costa Mesa Police Department; the Orange County Sheriff’s Department; the Gardena Police Department; the Placentia Police Department; and the Torrance Police Department.

The big rig theft suspect in a police standoff at the 55 Freeway is finally under arrest

Posted on November 4, 2021 by Editor Posted in CHP, Crime, Irvine, Los Angeles County, Santa Ana Leave a comment

The long standoff on the Southbound 55 Freeway finally has come to an end! The standoff was the result of a stolen big rig pursuit that began in Sun Valley on Wednesday night and concluded in Orange County as the suspect refused to leave the rig while surrounded by CHP and Irvine police officers.

The male suspect was finally arrested at about 8:30 a.m. today.

The big rig was stolen at about 8:15 p.m. on Wednesday night from a food service lot in East Los Angeles.

CHP patrol vehicles and a helicopter pursued the stolen big rig as it snaked through freeways in Los Angeles, Ventura and eventually Orange counties.

The police officers tried several times to stop the big rig with spike strips but while they succeeded in blowing up some of the truck tires the suspect kept going.

The pursuit ended in Orange County near Dyer Road early this morning. The CHP closed down the freeway causing a commuting nightmare for residents trying to get to work.

The SAPD provided their SWAT team to try to help convince the suspect to get out of the truck.

The suspect kept trying to get the truck to move and finally gave up and exited the vehicle at around 8:30 a.m.

The suspect has not yet been identified but he appeared to be a male in his early 20s.

The bad news is the freeway will remain closed for at least a few more hours due to the ongoing investigation continues.

Commuters are urged to avoid the area. If they are trying to get to Irvine or the coastal cities they will have to take the streets or stay on the 5 South to the 405 Freeway.

Suspect in fatal kidnapping of a Santa Ana auto dealer gets a 16 year prison sentence

Posted on November 1, 2021 by Editor Posted in Crime, FBI, Justice, Los Angeles County, Santa Ana Leave a comment

LOS ANGELES – A San Gabriel Valley man was sentenced today to 195 months in federal prison for participating in a conspiracy to kidnap a Chinese national who was violently abducted from a San Gabriel parking lot, and whose parents were extorted for $2 million in ransom before the victim died from his injuries.

Anthony Valladares, 29, of Pasadena, was sentenced by United States District Judge Fernando M. Olguin, who said, that Valladares and his co-conspirators committed a “horrendous crime” when they conspired to kidnap the victim, resulting in his death. Judge Olguin also ordered Valladares to pay $33,090 in restitution. Valladares pleaded guilty in October 2020 to one count of conspiracy to kidnap.

Valladares conspired with others, including Chinese nationals Guangyao Yang, 28, and Peicheng Shen, 35, to kidnap Ruochen “Tony” Liao, of Santa Ana. Valladares was the “muscle” hired to intimidate, beat, and subdue Liao during the kidnapping. Valladares agreed to accept cash for the job.

Shen, using an alias, met the victim several times under the pretense that Shen would help the victim collect a debt from another individual, according to court documents. During their third meeting, at a San Gabriel shopping center on July 16, 2018, Shen lured the victim to a minivan, where Valladares was hiding, and whose driver was Alexis Ivan Romero Velez, 25, of Azusa, whom Valladares recruited for the conspiracy.

Liao entered the minivan and spoke in Chinese with Shen, who used a specific word to signal Valladares to begin attacking the victim. Once Shen uttered the word, Valladares and Shen violently assaulted Liao, used a taser to subdue him, and ultimately bound and restrained him with a black hood and ties. Valladares admitted to helping Yang acquire the taser used in the kidnapping and admitted to acquiring a revolver and bullets for the kidnapping. Romero then drove the minivan to a location in Rosemead, where Liao was moved into a different car.

Shen and Yang then took the victim to a house in Corona, where they confined him by binding his legs together, taping his eyes shut, restraining his arms behind him, and confining him in a closet.

The day after the kidnapping, the victim’s father received a demand for a $2 million ransom in exchange for the victim’s life, with the money to be deposited into three Chinese bank accounts within three hours.

Valladares was not physically present for Liao’s death, which occurred when Shen and Yang held him captive.

Shen and Yang drove to the area of Mojave, California, to bury or otherwise dispose of the victim’s body and other physical evidence involved in the crime. Further, Shen allegedly had the closet of the Corona house re-carpeted. Yang also performed internet searches to determine, in effect, how fast a corpse decomposes in soil, court papers state. Liao’s remains were discovered in Mojave late last year.

“The seriousness of [Valladares’] crime cannot be overstated,” prosecutors wrote in a sentencing memorandum. “[Valladares] was an active participant and organizer of a violent kidnapping motivated solely by greed. He acted with utter disregard to the potential suffering and harm to the victim and his family.”

Yang and Shen, whose last known U.S. residences were in West Covina, are currently in custody in China on charges filed there related to the kidnapping. Velez pleaded guilty in September 2019 to one count of conspiracy to kidnap. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for November 10.

The FBI conducted this investigation, with significant assistance provided by members of the FBI’s Safe Street Task Force, which includes the Pasadena Police Department.

Assistant United States Attorneys Julia S. Choe and Frances S. Lewis, both of the General Crimes Section, prosecuted this case.

Suspect from Hawthorn arrested for burglarizing homes in Orange County

Posted on July 25, 2021 by Editor Posted in Crime, Huntington Beach, Los Angeles County Leave a comment

Jonatan Jose Medina-Mejia, of Hawthorn, was arrested earlier this week in connection with a series of residential burglaries that took place in Huntington Beach after an investigation led by the H.B.police detectives and Special Investigation Unit.

The investigation into Medina-Mejia is ongoing as detectives have reason to believe he is responsible for additional burglaries in Orange County.

Four men from L.A. were arrested after a high-speed police pursuit in Costa Mesa

Posted on July 20, 2021 by Editor Posted in Costa Mesa, Crime, Los Angeles County Leave a comment

COSTA MESA, Calif (July 20, 2021) – The Costa Mesa Police Department (CMPD) yesterday arrested four men after a traffic stop turned into a short high-speed pursuit and a yard-to-yard search.

On Monday, July 19, 2021, at approximately 12:15 p.m., a CMPD officer was patrolling the parking lot at the 3300 block of Bristol Street when he observed a white sedan with dark tinted windows. The officer stopped the vehicle for the Vehicle Code 26708(a)(1) violation and contacted the driver and three passengers. The driver, later identified as Dennis Junior Johnson, 25, Los Angeles, did not have any form of ID and did not truthfully identify himself.

As the officer opened the driver’s door and asked Johnson to step out of the vehicle, Johnson drove away at a high rate of speed. The vehicle drove south on Bear Street, driving on the shoulder of the roadway, crossing the center median, and driving into oncoming traffic. Officers pursued the vehicle, which went through a red light and reached a speed of over 80 mph. There were no injuries or collisions during the pursuit.

As the officers reached the intersection of Bear and Baker Streets, they lost sight of the vehicle. The vehicle was located in the intersection of Bear Street and St. Clair Street after it hit a curb and crashed into a stop sign. Johnson and the three occupants fled from the vehicle. Witnesses saw the subjects run west into the neighborhood. A handgun was located in the roadway near the suspect vehicle.

Officers established a perimeter in the neighborhood and conducted a yard-to-yard search. Johnson was located in the 800 block of Sonora Road. Two passengers, Myles Edward Rutledge and Naypone Malik Gaines, both 22 from Los Angeles, were found hiding together in a backyard in the 2800 block of Drake Avenue. Officers found Dvaryae Deshawn Bryant, 18, Los Angeles, hiding in a storage bin in the back yard of a home in the 800 block of Santiago Road.

The officer who had stopped the vehicle identified all the subjects. The four were arrested and booked on evading police, obstruction, and felon in possession of a firearm.

We would like to thank the observant witnesses that assisted us with helpful information. We would also like to thank the Orange County Sheriff’s Department for assisting us with K9 services and the Anaheim Police Department for assisting us with the use of their helicopter, Angel.

Anyone who may have additional information on this incident is asked to contact Detective Jerad Korte at 714-754-5051 or Detective Sergeant Monique Beckner at 714-754-5352.