Police Thursday sought the public’s help to identify a man and woman who followed a 92-year-old woman from a South Pasadena grocery store to her nearby home in the Monterey Hills area of Los Angeles and stole $6,000 from her.
The crime occurred on the afternoon of July 3, the Los Angeles Police Department reported. About 4 p.m. that day, LAPD officers went to the woman’s home in the 4000 block of Via Marisol in response to a report of grand theft.
“The officers met with the victim … who explained to them how two suspects had followed her and taken her money,” a police statement said.
The woman told officers she went to a grocery store in the 1700 block of Garfield Avenue, parked her car and went inside. Investigators later determined that a male suspect followed her while she was inside the store and watched until she finished shopping, police said.
“While the victim was loading her groceries into her car, the male suspect got into his vehicle, where a female passenger was sitting waiting for him,” police said.
“The suspects positioned their vehicle directly behind the victim’s vehicle, (and) when the victim pulled out of the parking lot, the suspects followed her,” police said. “While the victim was driving on Huntington Drive, the female suspect signaled the victim to pull her vehicle to the curb.”
When the woman pulled over, the man got out of his vehicle and told her that she had hit his vehicle at the grocery store parking lot, police said.
“The victim told him there were no signs of damage to either of the vehicles but she became concerned and did not want to argue with the suspect,” police said. “The victim was in fear and decided to offer to pay the suspect with a check. The suspect refused a check and demanded cash.”
The woman then offered to go to her home and pay him with cash, police said.
“The suspects followed the victim home where she paid them some cash,” police said. “The male suspect gave the victim a handwritten receipt, while the female suspect then created a distraction by asking for a glass of water. While the victim was in the kitchen with the female suspect, the male suspect went into the victim’s bedroom and took approximately $6,000. Both suspects then left the home.”
Police released security images of the male suspect and the suspects’ vehicle. The man was described as Hispanic, about 190 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. He was wearing a white shirt, blue jeans, and black work boots.
The woman was described only as Hispanic, with black hair. She was wearing a flowery dress. Their vehicle was described as a white 2015-2016 Mazda- CX3.
Anyone with information on the crime was urged to call detectives at (323) 224-0108, or (877) LAPD-247
