LAPD to increase patrols in San Fernando Valley after string of burglaries
LAPD to increase patrols in San Fernando Valley after string of burglaries
The Los Angeles Police Department will increase patrols along the San Fernando Valley's Ventura Boulevard following a string of home burglaries in the past week. Mayor Karen Bass said officers will also expand their presence in the area by placing LAPD vehicles in high-visibility locations and using license plate readers in high-risk burglary areas. Senior lead officers will also engage more with the community, according to Bass. "The safety of every Angeleno is my number one priority. The City has zero tolerance for these recent burglaries," said Bass. "Residents deserve to feel safe in their communities, especially in their homes, and we will continue to deploy the resources necessary to keep people safe." Bass added that the Metropolitan, Commercial Crimes and Robbery-Homicide divisions will collaborate with the detectives in the area to solve the cases. Detectives will hold weekly meetings to discuss the burglary trends and "develop further response methods," according to Bass. Since last Friday, there have been at least seven burglaries within the LAPD's North Hollywood Division, which oversees parts of Ventura Boulevard. LAPD said that so far this year, there were 156 burglaries investigated within the North Hollywood Division, a 45% decrease compared to the same period in 2025.
Man beaten, set on fire in downtown Los Angeles
A man was assaulted and then set on fire during a possible robbery in downtown L.A. overnight, police said. According to the Los Angeles Police Department, a call regarding an assault with a deadly weapon at 6th and Olive streets – near Pershing Square – just after midnight Monday. “When officers arrived on scene, they found a 70-year-old male that had been assaulted and set on fire,” a police spokesperson told KTLA. The man was transported to a hospital in unknown condition. There were reports that the man was also robbed; however, those reports were not confirmed by police. A suspect was arrested near Hope and 6th streets – just two blocks away – and was being questioned at a police station as of early Monday morning, according to police.
Silver Lake groper on the prowl as multiple women reveal they’ve been assaulted after dark
A groper is on the loose after a spate of attacks on women after dark on a popular California jogging trail. Multiple women claim they have been assaulted by a man who blinded them with his phone light while they ran around Silver Lake reservoir in Los Angeles. They have even taken to putting up signs warning women about a 6ft, 250lb man they claim has been harassing them.
DA Hochman, LAPD Chief McDonell to Hold D4vd Case News Conference
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman and Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell will hold a news conference Monday morning to discuss 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez and the case against singer D4vd in connection with the death of the teenage girl whose dismembered body was found in the front trunk of his Tesla. The Los Angeles Police Department’s investigation of D4vd was scheduled to be presented Monday to the District Attorney’s Office. LAPD officers arrested the 21-year-old singer, whose real name is David Anthony Burke, on Thursday. Video obtained by TMZ shows police taking D4vd into custody around 5 p.m. Thursday in the Hollywood Hills. D4vd — pronounced “David” — is suspected in the death of Celeste Rivas Hernandez, whose body was found Sept. 8 in the front trunk of a Tesla registered to him. The body was found days after what would have been the teen’s 15th birthday, although she is believed to have been dead possibly for weeks in the trunk of the car, which had been parked for several weeks in the Hollywood Hills before it was towed.
Man shot in Tarzana during possible house party; suspect at large
A man was hospitalized in critical condition after a shooting at a Tarzana home early Saturday morning, according to authorities. Officers with the Los Angeles Police Department responded around 1:45 a.m. to the 4700 block of Corbin Avenue following reports of a shooting, an LAPD officer confirmed to KTLA. A male victim was found suffering from a gunshot wound and was transported to a local hospital in serious to critical condition, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. The victim’s age was not immediately confirmed by police, though initial reports indicated the victim may be in his 20s or 30s. The suspect was described as a male wearing a green hoodie who fled the scene in an unknown vehicle. Authorities said it was unclear whether the shooting was gang-related.
Jewelry store break-in caught on video in Sherman Oaks is latest in rash of Valley burglaries
Surveillance video captured a brazen jewelry store burglary in Sherman Oaks, where thieves smashed their way into a business on Ventura Boulevard, adding to a growing list of break-ins across the San Fernando Valley. The video shows suspects breaking into a business next door to the Neda Jewelry Store, then tearing through a connecting wall inside a bathroom to reach the jewelry shop. A large hole was left behind, and footage shows the burglars sliding their way into the store before smashing items inside. Police said the thieves were unable to steal the owner's jewelry, which was locked in a safe, but they fled with some of the owner's property, leaving extensive damage behind.
Woodland Hills woman nabbed at LAX on Iranian arms trafficking charge
A Woodland Hills woman was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport Saturday night on suspicion of helping Iran funnel weapons to its proxies in Africa, propping up one of the world’s deadliest conflicts. Shamim Mafi, 44, brokered the sale of “drones, bombs, bomb fuses, and millions of rounds of ammunition” between Iran and the Sudanese Armed Forces, according to a criminal complaint filed in Los Angeles federal court just hours before her arrest at the airport, where she’d been set to board a flight to Turkey. The Sudanese military is locked in a bloody civil war that is estimated to have killed more than 100,000 people and displaced millions more since 2023, making it the deadliest of the ongoing proxy fights among Persian Gulf countries. Mafi is the third Angeleno from the city’s vast Iranian diaspora to be collared by federal authorities in three weeks.
Man sentenced to life in prison for attempted murder of Calif. officer
A Fresno man has been given a life sentence after he nearly shot an officer in the head during a shootout last year with police that left him critically wounded. Bradley Nicholson, Sr. was sentenced in superior court on Thursday to 14 years to life in state prison (plus an additional consecutive 14 years) for the Dec. 7 incident, in which he shot at a Fresno police officer with a .380 caliber pistol. The officer recognized Nicholson in an area near Clinton and West avenues and was attempting a post-release community supervision compliance check when Nicholson pulled and fired a gun, hitting the top of the officer’s department-issued baseball cap. Police body camera footage shows the officer returned fire as the man fled. It was a second officer who eventually shot Nicholson before the man barricaded himself behind a vehicle in a carport. He surrendered after negotiations and was taken to the hospital. Last year, Nicholson pled no contest to one count of attempted murder of a peace officer while personally using a firearm, and one count of assault on a peace officer with a semi-automatic firearm, the Fresno County District Attorney’a Office said in a news release.
Louisiana shooter Shamar Elkins made chilling remarks about ‘demons’ weeks before killing his 7 kids and their cousin
The deranged Army vet dad who gunned down his seven children and their cousin confessed he was drowning in “dark thoughts” and told his stepdad that some people “don’t come back from their demons” just weeks before the heinous killings, according to a report. Shamar Elkins, 31, killed eight children — five girls and three boys ages 3 to 11 — and seriously wounded two women believed to be his wife and girlfriend when he went on a shooting rampage through Shreveport following an argument with his spouse around 6 a.m. Sunday. Just weeks ago, on Easter Sunday, Elkins called his mother, Mahelia Elkins, and his stepfather, Marcus Jackson, and chillingly told them he was drowning in “dark thoughts,” wanted to end his life, and that his wife, Shaneiqua Pugh, wanted a divorce, the New York Times reported. “I told him, ‘You can beat stuff, man. I don’t care what you’re going through, you can beat it,’” Jackson told the publication. “Then I remember him telling me: ‘Some people don’t come back from their demons.’”
Public Safety News
Train hits, kills pedestrian in South Los Angeles
A train hit and killed a person in South Los Angeles on Sunday, according to authorities. The Los Angeles Fire Department said the collision was reported at 12:52 p.m. in the area of Vernon and Long Beach avenues. The person was pronounced dead at the scene. They've yet to be identified publicly. It's not yet clear how the crash occurred or if any other injuries were reported. CBS LA requested a comment from the LA Metro but has yet to hear back.
6 people, including 2 pedestrians, hurt in Panorama City car crash, LAFD says
Six people, including two pedestrians, were hurt after two cars crashed in Panorama City on Friday evening, officials said. The collision happened in the 14600 block of West Plummer Street just before 8 p.m., according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. Officials say both pedestrians and a person from one of the cars were seriously injured and expected to be taken to the hospital. Three people from the other car have minor injuries, LAFD said. Details about what led up to the crash were not immediately available.
Northridge honors man who risked his life to save 2 people in fiery crash
Councilmember John Lee and the LAPD Devonshire Division on Saturday honored a young man who risked his own life to save two others after a fiery crash in Northridge earlier this year. "A special presentation for someone who's shown what it means to be an angel in City of Angels," Lee said. “You have a community that’s so grateful for what you did and stepping up in times of need.” In the early morning of Feb. 9, Fermin Hernandez was driving along Nordhoff Street when he spotted a crash. "I saw two people inside the Tesla were not coming out," Hernandez said. "There's something going on. Smoke. I have to do something." Without hesitation, he ran to the vehicle — but the doors were locked. He tried everything, including punching the window. After several attempts and injuring his hand, Hernandez managed to open a door with the help of another witness. He then pulled the first victim to safety.
Local Government News
LA approves $360M in Measure ULA funds for 4,000 affordable housing units
A Los Angeles City Council committee took a significant step Friday toward addressing the city's housing crisis, greenlighting hundreds of millions in funding for affordable developments. The move seeks to fulfill the mandate of Measure ULA, the voter-approved "mansion tax" intended to curb homelessness through real estate levies. The Ad Hoc Committee on Measure United to House LA unanimously recommended the allocation of $360 million to support 80 housing projects. This funding, derived from a tax on real estate sales exceeding $5.3 million, is projected to create or preserve more than 4,000 units. Council District 14, represented by Committee Chair Ysabel Jurado, is slated to receive the bulk of the investment, with 1,700 units planned across 25 projects. Additionally, $14 million has been carved out for the Emergency Income Support Program, offering up to $19,000 in aid to vulnerable low-income renters.
