Law Enforcement News

Man Arrested In Connection With Fatal Stabbing Near MacArthur Park
Authorities on Saturday announced that they had arrested a man for a fatal stabbing that occurred near MacArthur Park in early January. According to a press release, Los Angeles Police Department officers and members of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Fugitive Task Force arrested the suspect, Alexander Adams, on Wednesday. He has been booked on one count of murder, after investigators found him to be connected to the fatal stabbing of Nicholas Garcia on Jan. 9. Officers were first dispatched to the 600 block of South Alvarado Street at 3:15 p.m. back in January after learning that a man had been stabbed in the area. Upon arrival, officers found Garcia suffering from a stab wound to the chest. They learned that Garcia and Adams had been involved in a fight before the incident escalated into a stabbing.
CBS 2

Homicide Investigation Underway After Call Of Shots Fired In Sherman Oaks; 1 Man Dead
A man was found dead and another was taken into custody after a report of shots fired in Sherman Oaks Monday morning. According to the Los Angeles Police Department, officers responded to the reported shooting near Ventura and Van Nuys boulevards around 3:30 a.m. A man, who has not been identified, was pronounced dead at the scene. Another man was taken into custody but authorities did not say whether he was the suspected shooter. It's unclear whether the incident occurred at a residence in the area or on the street. A homicide investigation is underway.
ABC 7

1 Killed In Early Morning Shooting In Westlake District
One person was killed early Sunday morning in a shooting in the Westlake neighborhood of Los Angeles. The shooting happened around 12:15 a.m. near the intersection of Lucas Street and Ingraham Avenue. Los Angeles police officers arrived to the scene to find one person suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Paramedics from the Los Angeles Fire Department also responded, but the unidentified person was pronounced dead at the scene. Video from the scene shows that streets were closed off in the immediate area where the shooting victim was found and a homicide tent was set up to cover the crime scene. At this time, investigators have not released any information about the shooting suspect or the shooting victim’s identity. Anyone with information about the deadly shooting is urged to contact the Los Angeles Police Department.
KTLA 5

Cashier Fights Off Knife-Wielding Man In Westlake Market
A split second decision may have saved a woman’s life after a man with a knife entered a mini market in the Westlake district. Surveillance footage from Amaya’s Mini Market on Feb. 9 shows a customer purchasing items. He lingers, asking the cashier to get him something from the back wall behind the register, then he makes his move . He pulls out a large kitchen knife from the plastic bag he was carrying and points it at the cashier’s waist. “He attacked the lady telling her to open the register and the lady didn’t want to open it,” Rene Amaya, the store owner, said. Amaya owns the mini market and says his employee held the knife handle to keep her attacker from stabbing her. She tries to scream for help and is somehow able to wrestle the weapon away, quickly turning the tables and chasing the attacker from the store. “It’s unbelievable the guy taking advantage of the woman working by herself here,” Amaya said. This happened in the middle of the day, just after 2 p.m. The attacker got away, and police are still searching for him. Amaya believes he may live close by, saying the man had been in the store earlier in the day. He says he possibly overheard another customer making a large money transfer.
NBC 4

LASD Searching For Missing Lancaster Man, 59, Suffering From Diabetes
Sheriff’s detectives asked for the public’s help Sunday to find a 59-year-old diabetic man who went missing in Lancaster. Michael Tyrone Eaton was last seen about 12:50 p.m. Friday in the 1600 block of West Avenue J, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Eaton is Black. He stands 5 feet, 8 inches tall and weighs 200 pounds, according to the LASD. He is bald and has brown eyes and a gray beard. He is missing his right leg and is missing two fingers on his left hand and uses a wheelchair on occasion. He was last seen wearing a dark jacket and green Croc shoes, the LASD reported. Eaton is also legally blind, the LASD reported. Anyone with information on his whereabouts was asked to call 911 or the LASD’s missing persons unit at 323 890-5500. Tipsters can also call Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.
MyNewsLA

Authorities Search For Woman Who Disappeared In Los Angeles County
Authorities are searching for an at-risk woman who disappeared in Los Angeles County on Saturday. The woman was identified as Natalie Simpson, 31, by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office. She was last seen on the 16000 block of Clarkdale Avenue in Norwalk, authorities said. Simpson is described as a Hispanic woman standing 5 feet 2 inches tall and weighing 145 pounds. She has brown eyes and blonde hair. She has a scar on her left eyebrow and a tattoo on her right arm. She was last seen wearing a brown coat and black ripped leggings (the same pair seen in the photo provided by LASD). Simpson is diagnosed with depression and there is concern for her well-being. Anyone who may know of Simpson’s whereabouts is asked to call the LASD’s Missing Persons Unit at 323-890-5500.
KTLA 5

LA County Real Estate Developer To Plead Guilty To Federal Charges
An Agoura Hills-based real estate developer is expected to plead guilty Monday to federal bankruptcy and tax fraud charges. Mark Handel, 68, has agreed to enter his plea in downtown Los Angeles to making a false statement in bankruptcy and submitting a false tax return, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Handel will forfeit about $3.54 million, which represents the proceeds of the sale of real estate in Alameda County. He also has agreed to pay to the Internal Revenue Service roughly $1.45 million in tax liabilities, which include civil fraud penalties, documents filed in Los Angeles federal court show. According to his plea deal, in April 2015, Handel filed a bankruptcy petition in Los Angeles in which he knowingly made false statements. Under penalty of perjury, Handel stated that he had no income from 2013 until April 2015. In fact, Handel earned about $2.26 million in income from DTMM Construction Inc., his West Los Angeles-based real estate development company.
MyNewsLA

California Deputy Dies In Crash On Way Home To Wife, Newborn After Shift
An off-duty deputy died in a crash driving home from work to his wife and newborn, California officials said. Brian Haney, a six-year veteran of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, was in a single-vehicle crash in Lake Elsinore early Thursday, Feb. 9, according to a statement from Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes and a news release from the Riverside Sheriff’s Department. When Cal Fire firefighters arrived at the scene shortly after 5 a.m., they found “a vehicle had hit a tree,” spokeswoman Maggie De La Rosa told The Orange County Register. Haney was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Orange County deputies. The crash is under investigation, Riverside County deputies said. “Our hearts break with the news of the death of our fallen brother, Deputy Brian Haney,” Barnes said in the statement. “He was known for his infectious smile, humorous and timely wit, and love for his peers.” Haney lived in the city and gated community of Canyon Lake, about six miles away from where he crashed, according to a Facebook post from the city.
Charlotte Observer

Man Who Shot Pennsylvania Police Chief In 2021 Sentenced Up To 30 Years In Prison
A Yardley man who shot the town's police chief in 2021 was sentenced Monday to 15 to 30 years in state prison. Colin Petroziello, 26, fired a shotgun at Yardley Police Chief Joe Kelly as he stood outside his condo with Christina Viviano, Petroziello's probation officer, in August 2021. The shooting sparked an hours-long standoff that caused chaos in the small town, forcing nearby businesses, including a daycare, to evacuate, and sending 300 police officers from surrounding departments to respond to calls for assistance. Petroziello entered a no-contest plea in September to two counts of attempted murder. In sentencing Petroziello on Monday, Bucks County Judge Wallace H. Bateman, cited Petroziello's lifelong struggle with mental health issues and drug abuse and called him a danger to the community. "We know very little was accomplished by the efforts of your parents to get you help," Bateman told Petroziello during the hearing. "The full extent of the impact your actions had upon the victims will never be known." Bateman praised Kelly and his fellow officers for their professionalism, noting that "any level of force" would have been justified in the aftermath of the shooting. Yet, Petroziello was apprehended unharmed.
The Philadelphia Inquirer

Public Safety News

'It Happens Every Day': LAFD Paramedics Say 911 Response Times Continue To Rise
When Carin Bannos called 911, she was confident an ambulance would arrive right away to help her 51-year-old husband Michael Davis, who had suddenly collapsed. "I was very, very anxious and I kept running from the house to the street, back to the house, back to the street to make sure they would not miss the house," said Bannos. She knew the Los Angeles Fire Department was on the way. But as the clock kept on ticking, minute after minute after minute and still no ambulance, panic set in for Bannos and her 9-year-old son. "My son was screaming, ‘Where are they, where are they?’ He kept running through the house, ‘Why can’t they save my daddy? Why is no one here?" said Bannos. Next door neighbor Phyllis Patterson was with the family when the paramedics finally arrived approximately 15 minutes after the 911 call. "One of them said to me, ‘I’m so sorry,’ and I said, ‘Why did it take so long?’ And they said, ‘Well, we had to come from a different station," Patterson recalled.
FOX 11

Westlake District House Fire Spreads To Apartments, Forcing Dozens Out Of Their Homes
Dozens of people were forced out of their homes after a massive fire at a vacant home spread to two neighboring apartment buildings in the Westlake District Monday morning. The fire started shortly after 1 a.m. in the two-story vacant home on Reno Street near 3rd Street, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. Over 150 firefighters responded to the scene and extinguished the flames in all three structures in just over an hour. The roof of the vacant home collapsed, and at least 12 units in the apartment buildings were rendered uninhabitable by the fire. At least 80 residents were displaced during the height of the blaze. The Red Cross will be assisting the affected families. One person was treated at the scene for smoke inhalation. No other injuries were reported, but officials said a cadaver dog was on scene, per standard procedure for such a fire.
ABC 7

Members Of LA County Teams Help Pull Woman And Son Alive From Collapsed Building In Turkey
Members of Los Angeles County Urban Search and Rescue teams who flew to earthquake-ravaged Turkey this week helped pull a woman and her son out of a collapsed building alive, authorities said Saturday. Representatives from the sheriff’s and Los Angeles County Fire Department’s Urban Search and Rescue teams were involved when the 52-year-old woman and her 18-year-old son were freed from the building that collapsed following Monday’s 7.8-magnitude earthquake. Trey Esby of the L.A. County contingent is a leader of a U.S. Agency for International Development team that was part of a task force that includes firefighters, paramedics, structural engineers, physicians and dog teams. “When you pull someone out alive, it’s a real morale booster to our team,” he told ABC7. Esby added: “We train year around and we do some very technical trainings for moments just like this.”
LA Daily News

California Tops 12 Million Coronavirus Cases As XBB.1.5 Becomes Dominant
The total number of coronavirus cases reported in California has topped 12 million. That milestone — reached last week, according to data compiled by The Times — comes as California is seeing increased circulation of the Omicron subvariant XBB.1.5, which has been described as perhaps the most infectious strain of the coronavirus. But in many respects, the pandemic picture remains relatively rosy, with newly reported infections declining and stabilizing in recent weeks. Hospitalizations have also ticked down to levels not seen since mid-November, indicating less strain on the healthcare system. “We do have more tools now than we’ve had at any point during the pandemic,” Los Angeles County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer told reporters. “While new strains always have the potential to drive surges in cases, to date, we’ve not seen a major increase in cases associated with XBB.1.5.”
LA Times

Local Government News

LA Council Members Seek Update On Retrofit Programs After Turkey-Syria Earthquake
After a 7.8 earthquake struck Turkey and Syria earlier this week, killing more than 23,000 people, some members of the Los Angeles City Council are seeking an update on the progress of the city's seismic retrofit programs, according to a motion filed Friday. The San Andreas Fault, which runs through California, is capable of producing an earthquake of similar magnitude, according to experts. In a motion on Friday, Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky sought for the council to instruct the Department of Building and Safety to report within 60 days with an update to the department's 2018 progress report on the city's retrofit programs. The council adopted ordinances in 2015 and 2016 mandating that buildings built before 1978 and are classified as wood-frame and soft-story be retrofitted. “Without proper strengthening, these vulnerable buildings may be subjected to structural failure during and/or after an earthquake resulting in injury and death,'' the motion read.
NBC 4