Mountain Views News          Saturday, September 18, 2010

6

PUBLIC SAFETY

MountainViews-News Saturday,September 18, 2010 

 
In An Emergency 
Tune To 
1630 AM 
Sierra Madre 
Community RadioIf there’s an earthquake, fire, or other 
emergency, 1630-AM will broadcast important 
safety information. Listen on any AM radio. 
Put a sticker on your radio! 
Stickers courtesy of the Sierra Madre Kiwanis Club 
Sierra Madre Police Blotter

During the week of Sunday, September 5th, to Saturday September 11th, the Sierra Madre Police 
Department responded to approximately 244 calls for service.

Monday, September 6th:

1:13 AM – Draw and Exhibit a Deadly Weapon, 70 W. Sierra Made Blvd., Buccaneer Lounge. A 
suspect brandished a knife at a patron when he was asked to leave. Upon leaving, a suspect(s) through 
a large rock at the front glass window, shattering the window. The suspect was described as a Hispanic 
or Armenian male, 35-40 years old, dark complexion, 5’11”, 165 lbs, short black hair, brown eyes, 
wearing a red shirt with a “Sprouts” market logo and khaki pants. Any information regarding this 
case please contact the police department.

Tuesday, September 7th:

11:23 AM – Auto Burglary, 314 N. Baldwin Ave., St. Rita’s Church. Suspect(s) smashed the front 
passenger side window and stole a black backpack from under the front seat. The crime occurred 
Tuesday, 9/7 between 9:30 am and 11:15 am. The loss was estimated at $230.00. 

Wednesday, September 8th:

10:39 PM – Suspicious vehicle, 500 block E. Montecito Ave. A residential extra patrol resulted in 
the arrest of two subjects seated in parked car. A records check revealed each had an outstanding 
warrant, one for trespassing and the other for possession of marijuana. Both males were arrested and 
transported to the police department. They were later released to officers from Monrovia PD and 
Pasadena PD. 

Saturday, September 11th:

12:31 AM – Kidnapping / Robbery, Sierra Madre Blvd. and Mountain Trail Ave. Two suspects 
reportedly forced a female into the back seat of a car and stole her purse. The female victim was 
driven a few blocks south on Mountain Trail Ave. before being released just north of Orange Grove 
Ave. The crime occurred on Friday, 9/7 at around 11:30 pm. The suspects were described as two male 
Armenians, 26-28 years old, driving a newer dark colored car. The loss was reported as a black purse 
containing a black wallet, cash, a California ID card and two credit cards. The loss was estimated at 
$65.00.

Arcadia Police Blotter

For the period of Sunday, September 5, through Saturday, September 11, the Police Department responded 
to 906 calls for service of which 104 required formal investigations. The following is a summary report of 
the major incidents handled by the Department during this period.

Sunday, September 5:

1. A traffic collision occurred at Santa Anita and Colorado around 9:26 a.m. A 33-year-old 
unlicensed female driver ran a red light and struck another car in the intersection. The male driver in 
the other vehicle was transported to a hospital with minor injuries. A private person’s arrest was made 
for the unlicensed driver, and she was later cited and released at the scene.

2. Around 8:19 p.m., officers were dispatched to the 00 block of West LeRoy in reference to a fraud 
report. The victim was advised by an employee from Nordstrom that $1600 in fraudulent charges were 
made to her account between August 28 and September 5.

Monday, September 6:

3. A grand theft was reported in the 600 block of Sharon around 1:43 p.m. The property owner 
advised that a tenant vacated the rental property and took her refrigerator, washer, and dryer for a loss 
of $3700. The suspect is described to be a 47-year-old male African-American.

4. Loss prevention personnel from JC Penney advised that they had detained a woman for theft 
around 1:43 p.m. The woman concealed over 100 items, worth about $2932, into several shopping bags 
that she had brought with her. A private person’s arrest was made, and the 32-year-old was taken into 
custody for commercial burglary.

Tuesday, September 7:

5. Around 2:12 p.m., officers were called to Sephora located at Westfield Mall in reference to a 
woman detained for theft. The suspect concealed cosmetics in a shopping bag and additional stolen 
property from Macy’s was also recovered. A 29-year-old Asian was arrested for commercial burglary.

6. Units were dispatched to the 1700 block of South First regarding a theft of access card report. An 
employee from a bank advised the victim that there were five suspicious charges on his account. About 
$1250 in unauthorized charges were made at Sears and Target stores located in the City of Glendale. 
The victim believed that his credit card information was compromised when he took his vehicle for an 
oil change in Arcadia.

Wednesday, September 8:

7. A 38-year-old male Caucasian subject attempted to commit suicide by overdosing on 
prescription medication while staying at Motel 6, 225 Colorado Place. He called 9-1-1, and he was 
transported to a nearby hospital for treatment and psychiatric evaluation.

8. Shortly before 10:00 p.m., a traffic stop was initiated in the 100 block of East Colorado for 
an expired registration. A consent search of the vehicle was conducted, and officers found suitcases, 
tools, jewelry boxes, and personal information belonging to different individuals. A 41-year-old male 
Hispanic was arrested for suspended driver’s license and receiving stolen property.

Thursday, September 9:

9. Between 8:50 a.m. and 6:28 p.m., a residential burglary occurred in the 900 block of South 
Eighth. Unknown suspect(s) entered the home via an open window and stole electronics, cash, and 
jewelry.

10. Units responded to JC Penney around 8:14 p.m. regarding a fraud investigation. Two women 
and a man attempted to purchase merchandise by using a fraudulently obtained credit card. The 
79-year-old account holder was contacted and she indicated that she did not give anyone permission 
to use her credit card. A 28-year-old female Caucasian, a 31-year-old female Hispanic, and a 31-year-
old male Hispanic were all arrested for commercial burglary. 

Friday, September 10:

11. Around 9:59 a.m., officers were called to the 200 block of East Santa Clara in reference to a 
grand theft. The property manager was advised by the Foothill Surgery Center that their emergency 
generator had been running for about nine hours. A maintenance worker checked the electrical 
junction box and discovered that copper wiring had been removed from the electrical piping.

12. A 35-year-old male Hispanic employee from the Lids store located at Westfield Mall was 
taken into custody for grand theft and embezzlement around 11:42 p.m. A customer notified the 
corporate office that when he purchased a hat with cash, the employee did not scan the item nor give 
him a receipt. Instead the employee took the customer’s cash and made change with money from 
his own pocket. When the employee was confronted, he admitted to keeping the cash in about 35 
transactions over a several week period in August.

Saturday, September 11:

13. A traffic collision occurred at Baldwin and Gate 8 around 7:02 p.m. An intoxicated 51-year-
old male Indian driver crashed into another vehicle. He was taken into custody for DUI.

14. An armed robbery occurred at Burger King, 82 West Las Tunas, around 8:07 p.m. A male 
Hispanic, around 40 years of age, 5’10”, 180 pounds, wearing prescription eyeglasses and with a 
moustache and goatee, pointed a handgun at an employee and demanded money from the cash registers. 
The suspect then fled northbound from the business.

Schiff to Reconvene Station Fire Panel

Washington, DC - Last month, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) organized a panel of Members 
to delve into the events of the first day of the Station Fire, which cost the lives of two brave 
firefighters, and threatened or destroyed the homes of a great many constituents in the 29th 
District and surrounding communities. Unfortunately, the Members were unexpectedly 
called back to Washington for a special August session and an important vote, and the 
panel had to be postponed.

With a strong desire to get all the facts out, and after discussion with many other Members, 
Rep. Schiff announced the new date and time for the panel to reconvene:

Date: Tuesday, October 12

Time: 9 a.m. – 11 a.m.

Location: Richard H. Chambers U.S. Court of Appeals Building, Courtroom Three 
125 S. Grand Ave., Pasadena, CA 91105

“The goal is to hear from representatives of the Forest Service and other responding agencies, 
as well as outside experts and critics, to shed additional light on firefighting procedures and 
techniques, how they were applied during the Station Fire, and how they should be revised 
to improve outcomes in the future,” Rep. Schiff said. 

Invited speakers:

Panel 1

William Derr, retired Forest Service employee

Don Feser, retired Angeles National Forest Fire Chief

Duncan Baird, homeowner, Vogel Flats Fire Recovery Alliance

Jody Noiron, Forest Supervisor, Angeles National Forest

Will Spyrison, (retired) Division Chief, Angeles National Forest

John Tripp, Chief Deputy of Emergency Operations, L.A. County Fire Department

Panel 2

Tom Harbour, Director of Fire and Aviation Management, Forest Service

Bob Cavage, President, Wildfire Research Network

David Gillotte, President, Intl. Assoc. of Fire Fighters, Local 1014

P. Michael Freeman, Chief, L.A. County Fire Department


SMPD’s MOST ARRESTING CHILI

The Sierra 
Madre Police 
Department also 
participated in 
last week’s Taste 
Of Sierra Madre 
by challenging 
the SM Volunteer 
Fire Department 
to a Chili Cookoff. 
(See page 8)

 The SMPD 
used a little 
creativity in their 
presentation by 
serving their chili 
with Cornbread 
Croutons. 

 Both departments 
had excellent 
entries and the 
contest ended up 
being a drawn.

 Restaurant 
Critic Peter Dills 
is shown (left) 
bestowing the 
SMPD with a 
trophy for the 
‘Most Arresting 
Chili”.

Photo by C. Bertrand

Monrovia Police Blotter

During the last seven day period, the Police Department handled 616 service events, resulting in 120 
investigations. Following are the last week’s highlighted issues and events:

Commercial Burglary / Forgery - Suspect Arrested

On September 2 at 12:12 p.m., a suspect entered a business in the 700 block of East Huntington in 
possession of fictitious money orders. The money orders were determined to be counterfeit and the 
suspect was detained. The suspect admitted that he knew the money orders were not real. The suspect 
was arrested and taken into custody. 

Outside Assist / Arcadia Police Department - Suspect Arrested

On September 2 at 1:35 p.m., Arcadia Police Department requested assistance for a vehicle that was not 
yielding at Chestnut and Monterey. A short pursuit ensued that ended in the 100 block of East Central. 
The suspect collided with another vehicle at Huntington and Ivy in Monrovia; no injuries resulted. 
Arcadia advised that the suspect was wanted for grand theft auto and evading. After the collision, the 
suspect exited the vehicle and ran into a nearby house. The occupants all exited, telling officers the 
suspect was inside. Perimeter containment was set up and numerous attempts to get the suspect to 
come out proved unsuccessful. Arcadia Police Department activated its SWAT team and requested 
assistance from Pasadena Police Department for more SWAT resources. Residents in the immediate 
area were relocated to the Community Center during the incident. Officers on scene advised that a gun 
had been located in the car the suspect had been driving. Arcadia Police Department deployed their 
robotic vehicle, and after a short period of time, the suspect surrendered to officers without further 
incident at approximately 8 p.m. He was taken into custody by the Arcadia Police Department.

Strong Arm Robbery - Suspect Arrested

On September 2 at 3:31 p.m., a female juvenile subject was walking in the 500 block of West Colorado 
when she was approached by another female juvenile. The female demanded to know who she was 
and then quickly grabbed the victims iPod from her hands. The suspect then fled west on Colorado. A 
Sierra Madre police officer who was patrolling in Monrovia due to the above Arcadia incident, observed 
the female suspect near Ivy and Colorado. She stopped the suspect and detained her. The suspect was 
positively identified by the victim. The suspect was arrested and charged, then later released to her 
parents.

Suspicious Person / Warrant - Suspect Arrested

On September 3 at 10:26 a.m., a female caller reported a suspicious person at a park in the 700 block of 
East Lemon. The male subject was staring at kids at the park and acting strangely. An officer responded 
and attempted to contact the subject. The subject was uncooperative, used profanity toward the officer, 
and walked away. The officer called for assistance, as the subject continued to be uncooperative, and he 
was detained. The subject was determined to have an outstanding warrant. He was arrested and taken 
into custody. The suspect has a long history of police contact, mental health issues, and drug use.

DUI Checkpoint

On September 3, from 7 p.m. to 2 a.m., officers conducted a driving under the influence checkpoint. 
1,230 vehicles drove through the checkpoint. 42 were diverted into secondary inspection. Out of the 42 
vehicles, 19 drivers were found to be unlicensed, 2 had suspended licenses, 7 citations were written for 
various violations, 3 misdemeanor arrests were made, and 17 vehicles were stored.

WORKSHOP WILL HELP PASADENA RESIDENTS 
MAKE THE MOST OF COMPOST BINS 

 A workshop for Pasadena residents on making the most of compost bins will be offered 
Saturday, Sept. 25, from 9 to 11 a.m. at Eaton Canyon Nature Center, 1750 N. Altadena Dr. 
in Pasadena.

 Sponsored by the Pasadena Public Works Department, the free workshop will teach 
residents how to help decrease landfill waste while generating rich soil for their gardens. 
Topics include bin assembly, placement, start-up and material collection. 

 Residents also will be able to purchase high-quality backyard composting bins for $50. 
Reservations are not necessary for the workshop or bin purchases. 

 Household compostable materials, including food scraps and yard trimmings, make up 23 
percent of the nation’s waste stream according to the Environmental Protection Agency. 

 “Composting slowly and naturally decomposes such items as banana peels and coffee 
grounds into dark, healthy soil,” said Gabriel Silva, the city’s recycling coordinator. “Using 
your compost can negate the need for chemical fertilizers, provide valuable nutrients for 
plant growth, and help combat pests and plant diseases.” 

For more information or to purchase a compost bin call (626) 744-7175. 

Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com