DA Hochman Reveals Charges Against Man Accused of Killing `American Idol’ Exec, Husband in Encino
DA Hochman Reveals Charges Against Man Accused of Killing `American Idol’ Exec, Husband in Encino
Neighbors of the Encinco couple, who were killed in their home by a suspect who was allegedly burglarizing the upscale residence, were speaking out Monday after a loud weekend party was shut down by police at the house next door. The party was held on Saturday night, next door to the White Oak Place home of “American Idol” music supervisor Robin Kaye and her husband Thomas Deluca, both 70. Raymond Boodarian, 22, of Encino has been charged with two counts of murder stemming from the deaths. The victims’ bodies were found at about 2:30 p.m. on July 14 in the 4700 block of White Oak Place, south of Ventura Boulevard, during a welfare check prompted by a call from an acquaintance who had not heard from the couple in several days, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. The victims were found inside the home with multiple gunshot wounds. A neighbor told reporters that a renter at her property called 911 on July 10 after seeing somebody jump over the fence around the home. Detectives suspect that Boodarian was burglarizing the house while the couple was away and stayed for about 30 minutes before they returned and found him.
Pedestrian killed in early morning Eagle Rock hit-and-run
A driver hit and killed a pedestrian before fleeing the scene in Eagle Rock early Tuesday morning, authorities confirmed. According to the Los Angeles Police Department, the collision was reported at 5:05 a.m. near the intersection of West Broadway and Colorado Boulevard, which is adjacent to the Eagle Rock Plaza shopping mall. Details of the crash weren't clear as of Tuesday morning, but police said a pedestrian was struck and pronounced dead at the scene. The person was not identified as of 7 a.m. No suspect information, including the make and model of the vehicle used in the deadly hit-and-run, was immediately made available. A bus lingered near the scene as police investigated, but authorities later specified that it was not involved. No additional details were immediately made available.
Bruin alum and former LAPD veteran named new UCLA police chief
Bruin alum and long-time member of the Los Angeles Police Department Craig Valenzuela has been named UCLA's new police chief, the school announced Monday. Valenzuela, who grew up in Harbor City, will start his new job on the Westwood campus in September. "I am pleased to welcome Chief Valenzuela back to UCLA to serve in this critical role," Chancellor Julio Frenk said. "The safety of our UCLA community is a top priority, and Chief Valenzuela’s accomplishments during over two decades of law enforcement leadership make him an ideal leader for UCLA’s police department As our new Office of Campus and Community Safety continues to grow and as UCLA prepares to host the world's Olympic and Paralympic athletes in 2028, I know Chief Valenzuela will elevate safety in a way that is inclusive and grounded in the tenets of 21st-century policing." Valenzuela joined the LAPD in 1996 after earning his bachelor's degree at UCLA in political science. He served several roles during his three-decade career with the agency, including commanding officer of the North Hollywood Patrol Division and the department's elite Metropolitan Division. Valenzuela is a graduate of the FBI National Academy.
Tesla camera captures video of suspects stealing safe from Woodland Hills home
Cameras on a Tesla captured the moments that two suspects allegedly took off with a safe they stole from a home in Woodland Hills on Sunday. Los Angeles police say that the burglary was reported just after 7 p.m. in the 4800 block of Canoga Avenue. The video shows two men, one wearing a black hoodie and black jeans, and the second wearing a gray sweatshirt with red pants, as they hurry away from a block of homes towards a black Mercedes-Benz with blacked out license plates. The second suspect can also be seen hauling what looks to be a safe. "They went in and robbed the house. They ransacked my office for money and things," said Sydney Field, who lives at the property targeted by the burglars. She says that they broke a back window at the home to gain entry, which wasn't enough for her home alarm system to trigger. After loading the safe into the back of their vehicle, the suspects began to flee, but the Tesla driver followed them for a short distance, according to the driver. They said that once the suspects appeared to notice they were being followed, they performed a quick u-turn, which caused them to clip another vehicle.
Wheel thieves strike roughly a dozen cars in L.A. – but only one side of the car
An uptick in car tire thefts is rattling residents of two L.A. neighborhoods, with some waking up to their cars on cinder blocks. However, rather than taking all four wheels, it seems that the thieves only have time for two. A viewer reached out to KTLA on Sunday night to report that “at least a dozen cars” had some of their wheels stolen on Saturday night around Beverly Grove and the Fairfax District. The viewer, Jason, said he was a victim and noted that he posted a photo of his truck on cinder blocks parked along Edinburgh Street in Beverly Grove to the Neighbors app, which prompted others who live nearby to report similar incidents. “[My post] sparked others to post that they were victimized too,” he said. “All of the vehicles were left on the same exact style cinder block.” Jason elaborated that incidents like these have been happening “for a long time” in the area; other posts on community safety apps like Neighbors and Ring, which he provided to KTLA, indicate similar thefts may have taken place as far back as July 10.
Ex-Hollywood Hills Man Pleads Guilty to Role in $13M Fraud Scheme
A former resident of the Hollywood Hills pleaded guilty Monday to federal charges of defrauding investors out of more than $13 million in a cryptocurrency scheme. Vincent Mazzotta Jr., 54, along with a co-defendant and others, bilked investors by falsely promising high-yield profits from cryptocurrency markets using automated trading robots powered by artificial intelligence, according to court documents. He pleaded guilty in Los Angeles federal court to one count of money laundering and one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice. U.S. District Judge Dale S. Fischer scheduled a Dec. 15 sentencing hearing. Mazzotta faces up to 10 years in federal prison on the money laundering count and up to five years on the conspiracy count, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Federal prosecutors said Mazzotta and co-defendant David Saffron falsely promised victims short-term, high-yield returns if the victims invested with cryptocurrency investment companies Mind Capital, Cloud9Capital and others.
Convicted rapist serving life sentence attempted to kill 2 guards at L.A. County prison, officials say
An investigation is underway after an inmate serving a life sentence at a Los Angeles County prison allegedly attempted to kill two guards over the weekend. The attack happened Sunday evening around 6:45 p.m., at the California State Prison, Los Angeles County in Lancaster. According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, two guards were stabbed with a shiv as they attempted to do an inspection in the cell of Shuantae Taylor. “Taylor began stabbing both officers with an improvised weapon,” CDCR officials said in a news release Monday. “Staff quickly quelled the attack and no other staff members were injured.” The guards were treated at the scene by medical staff before being transported to an outside medical facility for further treatment. They’ve both since been discharged, officials said. The suspected weapon was recovered at the scene, and Taylor was transported to a different prison to be placed in restrictive housing. CDCR officials say the attack is being investigated as an attempted murder, and the case will be presented to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office for potential charges.
New York gunman may have been targeting NFL offices, was L.A. high school football standout
Investigators are looking into whether a Las Vegas man who went on a deadly shooting spree in Manhattan Monday was targeting the National Football League after it emerged that the gunman was a former Los Angeles high school football player with a documented mental health history. New York Mayor Eric Adams said Tuesday that the gunman, identified by law enforcement officials as 27-year-old Shane Tamura, was trying to target the NFL but took the wrong elevator. Law enforcement officials have said the gunman marched into a 44-story office tower on Park Avenue that is the headquarters of the National Football League and investment firm Blackstone, at around 6:25 pm Monday carrying an M4 assault rifle in his right hand. He immediately opened fire in the lobby, shooting first an NYPD officer, then a woman who took cover behind a pillar and a security guard behind the security desk. After spraying more gunfire across the lobby, the gunman got into an elevator and went to the 33rd floor, which houses the Rudin Management real estate firm. He then walked around the floor, firing more rounds and shooting and killing another person, before walking down a hallway and fatally shooting himself in the chest.
11 stabbed in Mich. Walmart; bystanders help subdue suspect
Chaos unfolded at a Walmart in Michigan after a man burst into the store during a calm shopping afternoon and randomly stabbed 11 people, authorities say. Minutes after the attack on Saturday, the suspect was in custody with the help of bystanders at the store. The 42-year-old suspect, who was a Michigan resident but not known to law enforcement, entered the store shortly before 5 p.m. and used a folding knife to stab the victims, the Grand Traverse County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement on social media. Their ages weren’t immediately known. A sheriff’s deputy arrived on the scene within 3 minutes and took the man into custody. Steven Carter was loading his truck in the Walmart parking lot when he saw a man cut a woman’s throat with a knife. About five minutes later, the man was surrounded by shoppers in the parking lot, including one who was holding a gun. The group of five or six people kept yelling to the man, “drop the knife,” he said, and the man responded: “I don’t care, I don’t care.” He kept backing away from the crowd before someone tackled and subdued him. “At first, it was disbelief. I thought maybe it was like a terror attack,” said Carter, who delivers customer orders from Walmart. “And then it was fear, disbelief, shock. And that was, it was just amazing. And it all happened fast. Like he was totally subdued on the ground by the time police arrived.”
Public Safety News
1 killed, 1 seriously injured in Granada Hills crash
One person was killed and a 25-year-old man was critically injured in a collision Monday night in Granada Hills. The collision was reported at approximately 9:07 p.m. Monday, in the 10700 block of Lindley Avenue, near Chatsworth Street, where responding Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics found the victims, said LAFD spokesman Brian Humphrey. The victim, who was ejected in the collision, was pronounced dead at the scene. Their age and gender were not immediately known. A 25-year-old man was taken to a hospital by paramedics in critical condition, the LAFD said. The cause of the collision was not immediately known. No other injuries were reported.
Ocean water warnings issued for L.A. County beaches
Health officials are advising the public to avoid swimming, surfing, or playing in the ocean at multiple Los Angeles County beaches due to elevated bacteria levels that exceed state health standards. The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health issued warnings for the following locations: 100 yards up and down the coast from the lagoon at Topanga Canyon Beach in Malibu; 100 yards up and down the coast from the public access steps at Marie Canyon Storm Drain at Puerco Beach; the entire swim area at Mother’s Beach in Marina Del Rey; 100 yards up and down the coast from the Santa Monica Pier in Santa Monica; and 100 yards up and down the coast from the Castlerock Storm Drain at Topanga County Beach. Still, there is positive news. The department lifted a previous warning for Inner Cabrillo Beach in San Pedro after water quality test results showed improvement. For the latest updates on beach conditions, residents can call the 24-hour beach advisory hotline at (800) 525-5662 or visit PublicHealth.LACounty.gov/beach.
Hotshot firefighter critically injured in Northern California blaze faces ‘long road,’ family says
A hotshot firefighter who was severely injured by a falling tree while battling the nearly three-week-old Orleans Complex fire in Northern California faces “a long road ahead — emotionally, physically, and financially,” as he recovers in a hospital, his family said. Renzo Reginato, a member of the Cleveland National Forest El Coriso hotshot team, was one of three firefighters injured in the July 18 incident in Siskiyou County, according to the U.S. Forest Service. Reginato, whose injuries were the most serious, was airlifted to Mercy Medical Center in Redding and underwent emergency orthopedic and neurosurgical procedures for a broken tibia and fibula and a traumatic spinal injury, according to an account posted on GoFundMe by his family. On Thursday, the family posted a photograph of Reginato smiling and giving a thumbs up in his hospital bed while wearing an El Coriso Hotshots ballcap. Reginato was fighting the Butler fire, the larger of two Northern California fires comprising the so-called Orleans Complex in rural Siskiyou and Del Norte counties.
