By Tim Broughton
Identity Theft.
On Sunday, December 3, at 9:57 p.m. officers of the Santa Monica Police Department were called out to investigate a report of a fight in progress at the 7-11 Store, located at 1865 Lincoln Blvd. When the officers arrived they spoke with the victim and witnesses and discovered that the suspect had approached the victim outside the store and accused this victim of taking his identification and cellular telephone. The suspect then entered the store and began to yell at the store clerk for no apparent reason. The suspect then exited the store and punched the victim in the face before the suspect mounted his bicycle and left the scene. The officers went in search of the suspect and discovered him in the 1600 block of Lincoln Boulevard. After the victim had positively identified this 40-year-old resident of Venice the officers arrested this man and he was later charged with battery. Bail was set at $20,000.
Four Wheel Drive.
On Tuesday, December 5, at 6:45 p.m. officers of the Santa Monica Police Department, who were on patrol in the area of Third Street and Broadway, spotted a man who was pushing not one, but two bicycles at the same time. The officers immediately suspected something was amiss and so stopped the individual to ascertain whether or not a crime had been committed. As the officers were chatting with this two bicycled man another man approached and said, “Hey, that’s my bicycle,” as he pointed to one of the bicycles that the other man was holding. The officers discovered that the victim in this case had been taking a nap in Santa Monica Place and when he awoke he discovered that his bicycle was missing. The officers returned the bicycle to the victim and arrested the suspect and later charged this 50-year-old homeless man. The suspect was later charged with receiving stolen property and released.
Caught On Film.
On Wednesday, December 6, at 6:36 a.m. officers of the Santa Monica Police Department were called out to a business located in the 1300 block of Fifth Street in order to investigate a report of a broken window. When the officers arrived at the location they noticed that the glass door of the business had been shattered. The officers looked inside the business and spotted a man asleep on a couch that was located inside the business not far from the front door. The officers awakened this individual and asked him what he was doing there. The man claimed that he had not broken the window but had merely noticed that it was broken and decided to take a nap on the couch. The officers, however, were able to utilize their technological advantage and instantly access security video recordings that showed this man approach the glass door, bang on it several times with his fist, smash it open, walk inside and lay himself down on the couch. The officers thus arrested the suspect and he was later charged with vandalism. Bail for this 31-year-old Costa Mesa resident was set at $20,000.
A Catalyst For Trouble.
On Wednesday December 6, 2017 at 3:49 a.m. officers of the Santa Monica Police Department responded to the 2700 block of Broadway regarding two subjects who were trying to break into a Honda CRV. As the officers were en route to the location they learned via their police radios that the reporting party had heard what sounded like sawing noises, and that they has investigated and seen a man lying under the car and that the man was using a flashlight. The officers arrived at the location and noticed that there were several bolts and a butane lighter underneath the vehicle. The officers determined that the catalytic converter had been stolen. The officers then learned, again via police radio, that another officer had conducted a traffic stop on a suspicious looking vehicle nearby. The two first responding officers then joined the officer who had stopped the suspicious vehicle and after conducting a consensual search they discovered that the suspicious looking vehicle contained a catalytic converter from a Honda CRV! The officers contacted the owner of the CRV involved in the report and the owner stated that they were desirous of a prosecution so the officers arrested the occupants of the suspicious looking vehicle and suspect number one, aged 26 and from Los Angeles was charged with possession of stolen property, conspiracy and driving on a suspend license with bail set at $1,000. Suspect number two, aged 29 and also from Los Angles, was charged with conspiracy and receiving stolen property. Bail for this man was also set at $1,000.
Editor’s Note: These reports are part of a regular police coverage series entitled “Alert Police Blotter” (APB), which injects some minor editorial into certain police activities in Santa Monica. Not all of The Mirror’s coverage of incidents involving police are portrayed in this manner. More serious crimes and police-related activities are regularly reported without editorial in the pages of the Santa Monica Mirror and its website, smmirror.com.
