Los Angeles Car Thefts Remain Steady In 2024, But Still Far Cry From Pre-Pandemic Lows

Car thefts continue to be a problem for vehicle owners and law enforcement across Los Angeles, according to data from the Los Angeles Police Department. Independent news organization Crosstown LA analyzed the publicly available police data to get a better look on the citywide problem and how this year stacks up compared to years past. From Jan. 1 through Aug. 31, there were 16,964 stolen-vehicle reports in the city. That figure is about on par with last year, 53 fewer over the same time frame, and about 4.5% lower than in 2022. But you’ll have to zoom out further to get the full picture regarding the stolen vehicle mess in L.A. In 2019, right before the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, Los Angeles recorded a total of 15,724 stolen vehicles reports for the entire year — a number already surpassed in 2024, with one-quarter of the year still remaining. It reflects a troubling nationwide trend that began during the pandemic.

KTLA 5

Police Search For Arson Suspect In Blaze That Burned An Abandoned Construction Site In Chinatown

Police officials are asking for the public’s help in identifying an arson suspect in connection to a fire that started in an abandoned construction site and injured six people and displaced dozens in the Chinatown neighborhood. On Sept. 13 at 3:43 a.m. the Los Angeles Fire Department responded to a fire that started at a construction site at 712 New Depot Street and then jumped to a nearby three-story apartment building. Three other buildings were exposed to the flames, according to the fire department. An 80-year-old man experienced smoke inhalation and a female tenant, 55, sustained burn injuries to her hands and arms, according to police. Two firefighters suffered minor injuries. “After a thorough investigation, the [Los Angeles Fire Department and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms] officials determined that the fire was deliberately set,” Blake Chow, assistant chief for the police department, told NBC4. “Investigators have developed a strong lead on a suspect and are hopeful that the arrest will be made soon,” Chow said.

Los Angeles Times

LAPD Discovers Thousands Of Pounds Of Stolen Metal Scraps In San Fernando Valley

Authorities recovered thousands of pounds of stolen metal pieces used for street lighting from San Fernando Valley recycling centers and metal yards, the Los Angeles Police Department said Wednesday. Through compliance checks, the LAPD uncovered 290 pounds of street lighting wire stolen from the Los Angeles Bureau of Street Lighting and an additional 290 pounds from the Los Angeles Department of Transportation. Over 3,300 pounds of copper and aluminum wire that belonged to Caltrans were discovered in addition to a bronze plaque for the city of Burbank. The estimated value of the recovered metal parts was $46,000, the LAPD said. The compliance check resulted in the arrest of the owner of a Sun Valley recycling center for receiving stolen property. The checks were carried out last Friday by the Metal Theft Unit of the LAPD in conjunction with the office of Los Angeles City Council President Paul Krekorian. 

NBC 4

Arraignment Due For South American National Charged In Beverly Hills Hotel Robbery

The second of two South American nationals allegedly linked to the armed robbery of a $1 million watch from a man sitting on the patio of a restaurant at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel is scheduled to be arraigned Thursday on a federal charge. Jesus Eduardo Padron Rojas, 19, of Venezuela is expected to enter a not-guilty plea in downtown Los Angeles to one count of interference with commerce by robbery — known as a federal Hobbs Act crime, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. A mystery lingers over how Padron and his co-defendant came into possession of a gun registered to Christopher Dorner, the notorious former LAPD officer who killed four people before dying at the end of a standoff with police 11 years ago. The suspected robbers, believed to be part of a “crime tourism” group composed of foreign nationals who traveled to the United States to engage in high-value theft, are accused in the Aug. 7 midday heist of a watch worn by a man sitting with his wife and two daughters on the patio of the hotel restaurant. Prosecutors said one of the suspects approached and pointed a black semi-automatic handgun at the victim and pulled back the slide of the handgun, chambering a round.

MyNewsLA

Girl, 13, Arrested For Violent Threats Targeting Southern California School, Classmates

A 13-year-old girl accused of making online threats of violence targeting a Riverside middle school was arrested Tuesday, authorities announced. In a news release, officials with the Riverside Police Department said the threats, posted to social media on Sept. 13, were aimed at Chemawa Middle School and specific students, prompting many parents to pull their children out of the school over safety concerns. Over the weekend, police say they received several tips as to who may have been responsible for the violent threats. “On Tuesday, September 17th, our School Resource Officer assigned to Chemawa Middle School identified a 13-year-old female student as the one who posted the original threat on social along with the second post listing names of targeted classmates,” the release stated. After a search of the teen’s home, officers determined that she did not have access to any weapons. The unidentified girl was arrested and booked at a Riverside County juvenile detention facility for making criminal threats against the school and fellow students.  

KTLA 5

Video: Man Grabs Arkansas Trooper’s TASER, Kicks Her In Head Before OIS

Arkansas State Police have released dash camera footage from a traffic stop that led to an officer-involved shooting, KATV reported. The footage was made public on Sept. 18 after Benton County Prosecutor Joshua Robinson determined that Trooper Alexandria Duncan’s use of force was legally justified, according to the report. The incident began when Duncan attempted to stop a 26-year-old suspect on July 27 for speeding at 114 mph. According to police, the suspect initially failed to stop despite Duncan activating her emergency lights and sirens. After eventually pulling over, video shows the suspect with his hand on the gearshift, prompting Duncan to remove his keys to prevent him from driving away. When the suspect refused commands to exit the vehicle and resisted arrest, Duncan deployed her TASER. Video shows the suspect and Duncan continuing to struggle on the ground as Duncan repeatedly told the suspect to roll onto his stomach and put his hands behind his back. Duncan used the drive-stun function of her TASER multiple times in an attempt to subdue the suspect.

PoliceOne

NYC’s New ‘Ghost Car’ Task Force To Crack Down On Vehicles With Altered License Plates

A new city task force cracking down on “ghost cars” — vehicles with obscured plates, no plates at all or no registration that scofflaws use to avoid tolls or commit crimes — is hitting the streets, Mayor Adams announced Wednesday. The 90-day pilot program is one of several attempts in recent years to tamp down on the problem. This initiative, a team-up between the NYPD and the Department of Sanitation, has seized 295 cars since starting Tuesday, Adams announced. “These cars are a pain in the ass,” Adams said. “They want to do whatever they want to do, and not only do they address the issues of not paying tolls, but they also are very much part of the criminal element that we’re witnessing in this city.” The team’s efforts will be concentrated in Brownsville, East New York , Mott Haven, Melrose and Hunts Point, Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Phil Banks said. Fifteen NYPD officers will work with DSNY crews to go after the often uninsured or even stolen cars. “They’ve been used to inflict not only runs, but very serious crimes in our city, shootings, robberies and other dangerous incidents that we have,” Banks said. “So we’re not going to stand by this.” 

New York Daily News

LA General Needs Help ID’ing Patient

Officials at Los Angeles General Medical Center sought the public’s help Wednesday to identify a man who has been hospitalized for nearly two weeks. The man was brought to the facility on Sept. 6 from Albion Riverside Park in Lincoln Heights, according to the medical center. He is Hispanic, about 50-60 years old, 5-feet-7 inches tall, and weighs 212 pounds. He has brown eyes, black hair with gray patches, and gray facial hair. Anyone knowing his identity was urged to call social worker Kennedy DeBose at 323-409-3872 from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, or the Department of Emergency Medicine, Social Work Department, outside of those hours at 323-409-6883.

MyNewsLA

LA County Sees Unprecedented Cluster Of Locally Acquired Dengue Fever In People Bitten By Mosquitoes

For the first time, L.A. County health officials have identified a cluster of dengue fever cases that are not travel-related. Could we be seeing more of this disease in places it's not usually found. Experts say it's important for residents to protect themselves. We've grown accustomed to these aggressive ankle-biting insects. But the presence of the Aedes mosquito is giving dengue fever a chance to establish a new home. "The cluster of locally acquired dengue cases is unprecedented because it has never occurred before in L.A. County or in California, " said Dr. Aiman Halai, Director, Vector-Borne Disease Unit, Acute Communicable Disease Control Program with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. Health officials identified three cases between September 9th and now. All in the city of Baldwin Park. "These residents have no history of travel to areas where dengue is commonly transmitted," said Barbara Ferrer, Ph.D., M.P.H., M.Ed., Director, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.

ABC 7

Cal Fire Asks People To Stop Flying Drones Over Fires Because It Delays Their Firefighting

Cal Fire officials have publicly asked people to stop flying drones over fires, which they say severely impact their ability to do their jobs. While crews continue to battle a trio of devastating fires, which have torched more than 100,000 acres and more than 100 homes, they took to social media to ask the public to stop flying drones into restricted airspace — of which they've seen record numbers in recent weeks. "Every time one is spotted it stops work for the helicopters at least about an hour until we can locate, make sure the air is clear," said Doug Ross, Cal Fire aviation officer during a video from the department. "Really cuts into the firefight." In the Line Fire, which has so far consumed more than 39,000 acres in the San Bernardino Mountains, officials say that they've so far had to ground firefighting aircraft on several occasions because of people flying drones into the sky above the blaze. They say that interference from the drones at one point grounded all of their aircraft at an extremely crucial moment, which nearly allowed the flames to continue into Big Bear. 

CBS 2

Paul Krekorian Leads Final Meeting As LA City Council President

After a standing ovation and kind remarks from colleagues, City Council President Paul Krekorian closed his final meeting as leader of the 15-member board before Council President Pro Tem Marqueece Harris-Dawson takes the reins starting Friday. Krekorian, who represents the Second District, encompassing east San Fernando Valley neighborhoods, will leave the horseshoe in December due to term limits. As tribute to his many years on the council and leadership in the wake of a leaked audio recording that shook City Hall, Councilman Bob Blumenfield unveiled plans Wednesday to rename two sites in honor of Krekorian — the Victory Valley Child Care Center at 6451 Saint Clair Ave., and the Valley Plaza Sports Fields at 6980 Whitsett Ave. in North Hollywood. Blumenfield noted that Krekorian led efforts to establish and transform the two sites to what they are Thursday. “I couldn’t do the work for the next 79 days and I couldn’t do the work as council president, and I couldn’t have done the work as an Assembly member or anything else without the support, guidance and love that I’ve received from my wife, Tamar, for the last quarter of the century almost,” Krekorian said.

MyNewsLA

About the LAPPL: Formed in 1923, the Los Angeles Police Protective League (LAPPL) represents more than 8,900 dedicated and professional sworn members of the Los Angeles Police Department. The LAPPL serves to advance the interests of LAPD officers through legislative and legal advocacy, political action and education.