Mountain Views News          Saturday, December 21, 2013

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Mountain Views-News Saturday, December 21, 2013 

Arcadia Police Blotter

ARCADIA POLICE DEPARTMENT ANNOUNCES

UPCOMING DUI/DRIVER’S LICENSE CHECKPOINT 
& DUI SATURATION PATROL

The Arcadia Police Department will host a multi-agency DUI/Driver’s License Checkpoint during the 
evening hours of Saturday, December 21st, as part of the AVOID 100 DUI Task Force. This checkpoint 
will be conducted during the California Office of Traffic Safety’s “December DUI Crackdown,” which 
runs from December 13th thru December 31st. Additionally, this is one of four, multi-agency AVOID 
100 DUI task force operations scheduled in our region during this time frame.

 

One of the goals of our enforcement activity this holiday season is to promote public safety and 
increase awareness of the dangers associated with drinking and driving. This will be accomplished by 
providing a highly visible enforcement and publicity campaign, in order to deter intoxicated drivers 
from getting behind the wheel and driving. Through these efforts, we also seek to reduce the number 
of injuries and deaths associated with collisions involving intoxicated drivers. 

We would like to remind the public of the dangers associated with drinking and driving. It simply is 
not worth it to drive while impaired. Give the gift of life this holiday season and celebrate responsibly 
by using a sober designated driver. Remember, “Friends don’t let friend’s drive while impaired.”

Jan’s Towing provides a no cost “Don’t Drive Drunk” detour program, 365 days a year, and will provide 
a free lift home for drivers and their vehicles up to 7 miles in their service area. Call (626) 334-1383 
for more information. Don’t forget to visit the Arcadia Police Department News & Information Blog 
or follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Nixle for other pertinent news and information. Remember, the 
solution begins with you! 

Funding for this operation is provided from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National 
Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Report Drunk Drivers. Call 9-1-1!

For the period of Sunday, December 8th, through Saturday, December 14th, the Police Department 
responded to 879 calls for service of which 142 required formal investigations. The following is a 
summary report of the major incidents handled by the Department during this period.

Sunday, December 8:

1. Around 6:20 p.m., an officer was dispatched to the 1000 block of Fairview Avenue regarding 
a theft investigation. Unknown suspect(s) entered the attached garage through an unlocked door and 
stole property from two unlocked vehicles. No evidence was located and no one reported hearing or 
seeing anything suspicious. 
2. At about 7:20 p.m., an officer was dispatched to Macy’s at the Santa Anita Mall, 400 South 
Baldwin Avenue, in regards to a theft report. The suspect concealed merchandise inside her purse and 
exited the store without making payment. The 56-year-old Chinese female was arrested and transported 
to the Arcadia City Jail for booking. 


Monday, December 9:

3. Shortly after 1:30 p.m., an officer conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle for a broken tail 
light in the area of Santa Anita Avenue and Duarte Road. A records check revealed the 39-year-old 
Hispanic male had an expired license. He was cited, released in the field, and his vehicle was left 
legally parked. 
4. At approximately 7:16 p.m., officers were dispatched to a residence in the 400 block of San 
Antonio Road in reference to an alarm activation. No suspects were located inside the residence or 
in the surrounding neighborhood. An investigation revealed the suspect(s) shattered a bedroom 
window and fled the location with no property. 


Extra patrol was assigned to the residence since this incident was the home’s second burglary within the 
last month. 

Tuesday, December 10:

5. Just after 9:00 a.m., officers were dispatched to a residence in the 400 block of East Live Oak 
Avenue regarding a welfare check. An investigation revealed a 35-year-old male of unknown race was 
under the influence of a central nervous system stimulant. He was transported to Arcadia Methodist 
Hospital for treatment and later cited without incident. 
6. Around 6:00 p.m., an officer responded to the Arcadia Police Department front counter 
regarding a fraud report. The victim received a phone call from an unknown subject posing as an Edison 
employee. The subject stated that if the victim did not clear his account balance of $500, his power 
would be shut off. The victim paid the balance over the telephone via a Rite-Aid Moneypak and later 
discovered he had no outstanding balance when he called Edison for confirmation. 


Wednesday, December 11:

7. Just after 3:00 p.m., an officer responded to the 1200 block of West Huntington Drive regarding 
a suspicious circumstances report. The juvenile victim explained that while she was walking to school in 
the 1000 block of Arcadia Avenue, she observed an adult male following her from behind and starring 
at her from inside his vehicle. Shortly after the victim started running away, the subject fled out of sight.


The suspect vehicle is described as an older model, 4-door, faded black Toyota with tinted windows. 
The subject is described as White or Hispanic in his thirties with short brown hair and an unshaven 
“scruffy” beard. 

8. Around 3:24 p.m., an officer was dispatched to a traffic collision in the intersection of Second 
Avenue and Santa Clara Street. A 2001 Volkswagon Jetta was struck by a 2009 Honda CRV as the 
Jetta attempted to make a left turn onto Santa Clara Street. The officer determined the Jetta caused the 
collision as the driver failed to yield to oncoming traffic. The driver of the CRV reported having chest 
pain, but declined medical treatment. 


Thursday, December 12:

9. Just after 6:50 p.m., an officer responded to Santa Anita Race Track, 285 West Huntington 
Drive, in regards to a male subject detained for possession of a controlled substance. An investigation 
revealed the 27-year-old Hispanic male was in possession of 14.4 grams of methamphetamine for 
sale. He was arrested and transported to the Arcadia City Jail for booking. 
10. At about 10:27 p.m., officers were dispatched to the 800 block of North Santa Anita Avenue 
regarding a burglary report. Unknown suspect(s) forced entry through the front door and fled 
undetected with property including a laptop, jewelry, and toys. No evidence or witnesses were located. 


Friday, December 13: 

11. At approximately 2:39 a.m., an officer made consensual contact with a subject walking in the 
area of Huntington Drive and Morlan Place. The officer discovered the subject was under the influence 
of an alcoholic beverage and unable to care for himself. The 35-year-old Hispanic male was arrested and 
transported to the Arcadia City Jail for booking. 
12. At about 1:40 p.m., an officer responded to Abercrombie and Fitch at the Santa Anita Mall, 
400 South Baldwin Avenue, regarding a theft report. A 44-year-old male of unknown race concealed a 
cologne on his person and exited the store without making payment. A records check revealed he had 
an outstanding misdemeanor warrant. He was arrested and transported to the Arcadia City Jail for 
booking. 


Saturday, December 14:

13. Around 12:34 p.m., an officer was dispatched to the Arcadia Police Department front counter 
regarding a fraud report. While checking his Chase bank account online, the victim discovered 
unknown suspect(s) cashed two unauthorized checks at Chase, 60 East Huntington Drive. An 
investigation revealed the checks issued for approximately $3,500 each were fraudulent. No suspect 
information was known at the time of the report. 
14. Shortly before 7:00 p.m., an officer conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle for a broken tail 
light in the area of Longden Avenue and El Monte Avenue. The officer discovered the driver was in 
possession of concentrated cannabis. The 18-year-old Hispanic male was arrested and transported to 
the Arcadia City Jail for booking


PEDESTRIAN 
HIT, KILLED 
ON SANTA 
ANITA

An 83 year-old West Covina 
man was walking across Santa 
Anita Avenue south of Duarte 
Road early Wednesday evening 
when he was struck and 
killed by a southbound car 
driven by a 36 year-old Monterey 
Park woman.

Arcadia Police Department 
report:

Arcadia Police had officers 
respond to the intersection 
of Santa Anita Avenue and La 
Sierra Drive at approximately 
5:36 p.m. on Thursday, December 
18, 2013. They were 
investigating the report of a 
traffic collision, involving a 
pedestrian.

The automobile was traveling 
southbound in the number 
two lane of Santa Anita Avenue. 
The driver is a 36-year-
old female resident of Monterey 
Park. The pedestrian 
was struck while walking 
in the number two lane of 
southbound Santa Anita Avenue. 
The driver stopped at the 
scene of the collision. Arcadia 
Paramedics treated the pedestrian 
at the scene but, unfortunately, 
he succumbed to his 
injuries. The pedestrian was 
an 83-year-old male resident 
of West Covina.

The investigation is being 
conducted by the Arcadia 
Police Department Detective 
Bureau’s Major Accident 
Investigation Team. Anyone 
with information related to 
this case is asked to call the 
Arcadia Police Department at 
(626)574-5150. You can also 
submit crime tips and information 
via text, phone, or web 
to LA Regional Crime Stoppers, 
800-222-TIPS (8477).

Arcadia’s Best

Beware! Fraudsters are impersonating IRS agents are calling people 
across the country demanding they pay taxes that they don't 
even owe.

The IRS warned of this "pervasive" scam saying it has been identified 
in nearly every state, we had one confirmed incident in Duarte 
this week. 

They target innocent taxpayers –often immigrants or people retired 
or close to retirement age -- victims are answering their 
phones only to be informed they owe money to the IRS and need 
to pay it immediately by either loading money on a prepaid card 
or sending it via a wire transfer. If they argue or refuse to pay, 
scammers will threaten to arrest or deport them, or even suspend 
their business or driver's license. "In many cases, the caller becomes 
hostile and insulting," the IRS said in a statement.

Duarte resident reported they called many times and gave a 24 
hour deadline to get the prepaid card and meet them at a local 
Duarte business. These calls may be convincing, because the 
scammers use caller ID spoofing to make sure the IRS's toll-free 
phone number or 911 shows up on the caller ID, they make up 
bogus badge numbers and may know the last four digits of a victim's 
Social Security number. 

Sometimes victims will even hear background noise that sounds 
like a call center. And if the victim hangs up, they may get another 
call seconds later from the same scammer -- or another one -- 
saying they are with the police or an agent at the DMV and someone 
will issue a warrant for their arrest if they do not pay.

To avoid getting duped, don't believe anyone claiming to be the 
IRS who calls to ask for your credit card number or requests a prepaid 
debit card or wire transfer. The IRS said it will never ask for 
payments to be made by prepaid debit card or wire transfer, and 
it typically makes its first contact with taxpayers by mail. Nasty 
language and threats should also be a red flag.

You should also be immediately suspicious of any caller demanding 
money, especially if you aren't aware that you owe anything.

"If someone unexpectedly calls claiming to be from the IRS and 
threatens police arrest, deportation or license revocation if you 
don't pay immediately, that is a sign that it really isn't the IRS calling," 
IRS Acting Commissioner Danny Werfel said in a statement.

To report any calls like this, contact the Treasury Inspector General 
for Tax Administration at 800-366-4484. 

If you have been a victim please report it by callingTemple Sheriff's 
Station at (626) 448-9861 or (626) 285-7171.