Mountain Views News          Saturday, March 12, 2016

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Mountain Views-News Saturday, March 12, 2016 

ARCADIA POLICE BLOTTER

ARCADIA PD’S PROACTIVE STANCE 

AGAINST INCREASED CRIME: 

LT. CASTRO EDUCATES WEST AREA

For the period of Sunday, February 28th, through 
Saturday, March 5th, the Police Department 
responded to 928 calls for service of which 100 
required formal investigations. The following is a 
summary report of the major incidents handled by 
the Department during this period.

Sunday, February 28:

Just before 10:58 a.m., an officer responded to 
Lucky’s Donuts, 160 East Duarte Road, regarding a 
petty theft report. The officer discovered an unknown 
Hispanic female picked up the victim’s wallet after 
she dropped it on the floor. The suspect was gone by 
the time the officer arrived.

Monday, February 29:

At approximately 4:17 p.m., an officer responded 
Bank of America, 180 North Santa Anita Avenue, 
regarding a grand theft report. The officer discovered 
two unknown suspects stole $1,200.00 from the cash 
drawer while the cashier was distracted. The suspects 
fled in an unknown direction. The investigation is 
ongoing.

 Both suspects are described as Middle Eastern 
males, approximately 18 to 20-years-old, with thin 
builds.

Tuesday, March 1:

Around 11:01 a.m., an officer responded to a 
residence in the 2000 block of Canyon Road 
regarding a burglary report. An investigation 
revealed unknown suspects smashed a rear sliding 
glass door, ransacked the residence, and fled without 
any property. The investigation is ongoing pending 
review of surveillance footage. 

Wednesday, March 2:

At about 2:22 p.m., an officer responded to the 
parking lot of Jim’s Burgers, 915 West Duarte Road, 
regarding a battery report. The officer discovered 
a physical altercation ensued between an adult 
daughter and her mother resulting in the daughter 
hitting her mother multiple times, causing her 
glasses to break. The 23-year-old female from Duarte 
was arrested and transported to the Arcadia City Jail 
for booking.

Thursday, March 3:

At approximately 1:04 a.m., an officer responded 
to the 400 block of Santa Rosa Road regarding an 
activation of an Arcadia Police Department GPS 
tracker. Arcadia PD detectives had previously 
deployed decoy packages containing bait property 
and tracking devices to combat the increase 
in package thefts from residential areas. An 
investigation revealed a 32-year-old male from 
Pasadena had the stolen package, property, and 
tracking device in his possession. The suspect was 
arrested and transported to the Arcadia City Jail for 
booking.

 Around 5:03 p.m., an officer responded to the 
Arcadia Mall, 400 South Baldwin Avenue, regarding 
a grand theft report. An Arcadia Police Department 
GPS tracker activated when a 14-year-old juvenile 
rode off with the bait bicycle. The suspect was 
arrested and transported to the Arcadia City Jail for 
booking.

Friday, March 4: 

At about 6:25 a.m., an officer responded to the 300 
block of Longden Avenue regarding an activation 
of an Arcadia Police Department GPS tracker. 
The officer discovered unknown suspects stole the 
package, left it inside their vehicle, and abandoned 
the vehicle before officers arrived. One of the 
suspects left her California ID in the vehicle and was 
seen on surveillance footage stealing the package. 
The suspect is a 29-year-old female from the City of 
Whittier. The investigation is ongoing.

 Just before 11:40 a.m., an officer responded 
to a residence in the 1000 block of Don Robles 
Drive regarding an attempted burglary report. An 
officer determined unidentified suspect(s) rang the 
doorbell, and when no one answered, they kicked in 
the front door, but were scared off once the resident 
screamed. No other witnesses were located. The 
investigation is ongoing.

 Shortly after 3:32 p.m., an officer responded to the 
200 block of North Santa Anita Avenue regarding 
a suspicious circumstance report. The officer 
discovered a female subject was yelling for help due to 
an argument she was having with her boyfriend. An 
investigation revealed the boyfriend, a 26-year-old 
male from Hawthorne, was driving a stolen vehicle 
and did not have a valid license. The girlfriend, a 
19-year-old female from Los Angeles, was arrested 
for an outstanding misdemeanor warrant. Another 
occupant in the vehicle, a 25-year-old male from Los 
Angeles, was in possession of methamphetamine. 
All three suspects were arrested and transported to 
the Arcadia City Jail for booking.

 Around 4:50 p.m., an officer responded to Citibank, 
100 South First Avenue, regarding a robbery that 
had just occurred. An investigation revealed an 
unknown suspect entered the business, presented a 
demand note, and fled without any property. 

 The suspect is described as a Hispanic male in his 
late 20’s, approximately 5’10” tall, 180 pounds. The 
investigation is ongoing. 

 Shortly after 11:22 p.m., an officer responded to 
the intersection of Baldwin Avenue and Foothill 
Boulevard regarding a female victim who had 
been pushed out of a moving vehicle. The officer 
discovered an altercation began inside the vehicle 
between the victim and the 23-year-old male suspect 
from Pomona when she said she didn’t want a 
relationship with him. The suspect grew angry, 
pulled a knife on the victim while driving, and as the 
victim opened the door to flee, the suspect pushed 
her out of the vehicle. The victim was taken to 
Huntington Memorial Hospital for treatment. The 
suspect is outstanding at the time of this report.

Saturday, March 5:

Just after 8:14 a.m., an officer responded to a 
residence in the 600 block of Camino Grove Avenue 
regarding a disturbance report. An investigation 
revealed a fight occurred between a husband and 
wife resulting in the husband threatening his wife 
as he retrieved a firearm. The 57-year-old male from 
Arcadia was arrested and transported to the Arcadia 
City Jail for booking.

 At approximately 9:22 a.m., an officer responded 
to Arcadia Party Rentals, 124 Wheeler Avenue, 
regarding a vandalism report. The officer discovered 
unknown suspects spray painted graffiti on five box 
trucks sometime during the previous afternoon. No 
suspects were seen and no witnesses were located.

 Around 12:23 p.m., an officer responded to the 
2000 block of Carolwood Drive regarding a vehicle 
burglary report. An investigation revealed an 
unknown suspect broke the driver’s window of the 
vehicle and stole various items. No suspects were 
seen and no witnesses were located.


Sami Taylor of the City of Arcadia’s Water Conservation Program will speak to the Arcadia Branch of 
AAUW on April 11.

By Joan Schmidt

THIS MESSAGE IS FOR EVERYONE: FROM 
ANY CITY, ANY COUNTY AREA-THIS 
PERTAINS TO YOU!

 I consider myself pretty knowledgeable 
about AB 109, and Proposition 47. (Thanks 
to Supervisor Antonovich, his staff, LASD, 
and local Police Agencies for their facts and 
statistics.) 

 However last night’s Neighborhood Meeting 
called by Lt. Mike Castro for Arcadia’s West 
Area really shed more light on residential 
burglaries. 

Arcadia PD is a proactive Department. First 
they divided the city into five areas and 
assigned a Lieutenant to each area. Because of 
the increased rate in residential burglaries, Lt. 
Castro realized the need to educate the public 
and decided to have a meeting. He asked 
volunteer Mike Vercillo to get the word out 
about the meeting, and many attended.

There was a lot of good information, so I will use 
“bullets” in the hope it is easier to understand.

- There has been a great spike in residential 
burglaries in ALL areas. In Arcadia, the thieves 
are mostly LA gang members going after CASH 
and EXPENSIVE JEWELRY. 

- The first step is surveillance. They target 
an area or even just a house. They watch the 
residents, and learn their schedules. Is the 
house vacant during the day?

- They even look at the resident’s attire. For 
instance, a woman leaving in jogging clothes. 
Will she be at the gym for a while?

- High-end vehicles are being rented, 
windows tinted and plastic dealership tags put 
over the license plates hiding the numbers. 
(REPORT ANY UNFAMILIAR VEHICLES! 
)

- These perpetrators have a “Shot Caller”, 
who is “Running a Business”. He sends people 
out to do the surveillance.

- The driver is usually a female wearing a 
“Hoody”- trying to hide her identity. There 
are usually two males working with her. 

- The men get out of the car. One knocks 
on the door. If there is no, answer, he goes 
around back.

- Most break-ins occur in the back through 
windows or sliding-glass doors. Even if you 
have an alarm system, the response time is 
nine minutes. 

- AB 109 has sent 10,000 state prisoners 
down into ALREADY overcrowded jails. 
(These are N3’s-non-violent, non-serious, 
non-sex offenders. Lt. Castro explained that 
the “N3” ONLY refers to the current charge.)

- AB 109 also shifted supervision of “Low 
Level” parolees to be supervised by county 
probation instead of state parole agents.

- WHY THESE BURGLARIES ARE 
HAPPENING: Proposition 47, the SAFE 
NEIGHBOODS and SCHOOLS ACT 
changed crimes from FELONIES to 
MISDEMEANORS. Many misdemeanors 
are strictly a ticket and no jail time. No 
accountability, no reason not to commit a 
crime.

- MOST IMPORTANT: CALL YOUR 
POLICE DEPARTMENT IF ANYTHING 
SEEMS UNUSUAL or SUSPICIOUS.

 Lt. Castro said the only way to stop or lessen 
this crime is by educating the public and by the 
public working with their local law enforcement 
agency. This is the SAME UNIVERSAL 
MESSAGE TO RESIDENTS ANYWHERE: 

know your neighbors and their schedules. 
Report ANY unusual activity, unfamiliar car or 
person you don’t know. A Mercedes Benz may 
mean someone is scouting your area. Lastly 

CONTACT your local Assembly Member, 
(Roger Hernandez, Chris Holden or Ed Chau, 
depending on your residence) and implore 
them to work on a repeal of Prop 47. Thank you.

ARCADIA RECREATION AND COMMUNITY 
SERVICES SPRING DAY CAMP!

The Recreation and Community Services Department 
is offering a Springtime Kid’s Day Camp at Hugo 
Reid Elementary School, 1000 Hugo Reid Drive, in 
Arcadia. This camp is open to elementary school 
children grades 1-5 and provides a safe, supervised, 
kid friendly camp during spring vacation. The 
dates are Tuesday, April 5th, Wednesday, April 6th, 
Thursday, April 7th and Friday, April 8th from 9am 
to 5pm for a cost of $20 per day. Sign your child 
up for one day or all four. The camp is filled with 
fun group activities including crafts, board games, 
movies, snacks and more. Children must bring a 
sack lunch each day. Supervision is generally on 
a ratio of one Recreation Leader for each group 
of 10 children. To register go to the city’s website 
at www.Arcadiaca.gov under the Recreation and 
Community Services Department or come by our 
office, 375 Campus Drive. Cancellations must be 
made by Friday, April 1st in order to receive a refund 
(which is subject to a $10 service charge). 

 For more questions, please contact the Recreation 
Department at 626.574.5113.

About the City of Arcadia

 Nestled in the foothills of the San Gabriel 
Mountains, Arcadia is an 11.38 square mile 
community with a population of just over 56,000. 
Located approximately 20 miles east of downtown 
Los Angeles, Arcadia is known for combining 
small-town charm with the conveniences and 
amenities of a mid-size city. Arcadia is a full-
service charter city governed by a five-member 
City Council, elected at large. Recognized for 
exceptional education and recreation opportunities 
and beautiful neighborhoods, Arcadia is also defined 
as the “Community of Homes” and has twice been 
designated the “Best City in California in which to 
Raise Kids” by Business Week Magazine.

DROUGHT SOLUTION FROM CITY OF ARCADIA

California residents are all aware that our state 
is still in a drought, and they are aware of local 
restrictions placed on available water use. But 
who of us in this area has not said, “Why don’t we 
capture more stormwater instead of just letting it 
flow to the ocean?” That is exactly what the City 
of Arcadia is planning to do, and Sami Taylor, 
Management Aide of Water Conservation for 
the City of Arcadia is just the person to explain 
the City’s “Median Master Plan.” According to 
Taylor, the City is “in the process of updating 
the Median Master Plan to renovate the City’s 
existing (street) medians with water efficient 
designs” that help to “harvest stormwater.” This 
is exciting news!

 Sami Taylor is well qualified to speak on 
the subject of water conservation. She holds 
an MPA and certificate in Sustainability Policy 
and Planning from USC’s Price School. Her 
B.A. in Environmental Studies and Geology is 
from Oberlin College. She has the distinction 
of playing an integral part, along with the USC 
Office of Sustainability, in transforming the L. A. 
Memorial Coliseum into a zero-waste venue! Her 
many credits include being active with the L. A. 
Food Policy Council and Roots of Change.

 Sami Taylor will speak at a meeting of the 
Arcadia Branch of the American Association of 
University Women (AAUW) on Monday, April 
11. The group meets in the Church of the Good 
Shepherd’s Jordan Hall, 400 West Duarte Rd., 
Arcadia (SW corner of Duarte Rd. and Holly 
Ave.). Members and guests are invited to come 
at 1:30 pm for socializing and refreshments with 
the program to follow at 2:00 pm. The public is 
invited to this free meeting.

 

 For information about membership in the 
American Association of University Women 
(AAUW), please call Tamara Kato at (626) 375-
6756. Membership in AAUW is open to all women 
and men holding a university or college degree, as 
well as to those with an Associate of Arts degree or 
its equivalent.


Sami Taylor of the City of Arcadia’s Water 
Conservation Program will speak to the Arcadia 
Branch of AAUW on April 11.

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