Police Seek Help Identifying Suspected Hit-and-Run Driver in Reseda
Law Enforcement News
Police Seek Help Identifying Suspected Hit-and-Run Driver in Reseda
The Los Angeles Police Department sought the public’s help Tuesday in identifying a suspected hit-and-run driver who critically injured a man riding an electric scooter in Reseda. A dark-colored SUV traveling eastbound on Strathern Street struck the e-scooter heading south in the bike lane on Reseda Boulevard at approximately 6:25 a.m. Thursday, resulting in the victim being thrust into the air before hitting the pavement, police said. Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics arrived at the location and took the man to a hospital, where he was treated for severe, unspecified injuries. “Motorists are reminded that if they become involved in a collision, they should pull over and stop as soon as it is safe to do so, notify emergency services, and remain at the scene to identify themselves,” police said in a statement. A reward of up to $25,000 is being offered for information leading to the suspect’s identity, arrest, and conviction.
100+ burglary arrests made across Los Angeles over the last month
More than 100 arrests linked to residential and commercial burglaries were made over the last month across the city of Los Angeles, Mayor Karen Bass and Los Angeles police officials announced Tuesday. Among them, at least one suspect was connected to a South American organized crime group that is believed to be behind 25 residential burglaries, Mayor Bass said. Nearly half of the burglaries occurred in the San Fernando Valley. Another suspect is believed to have burglarized 30 properties, Bass added. "If you live in a neighborhood that has been burglarized or you know of someone, the statistics are nice, but what is important is that you actually feel safe, not just the data telling you said," the mayor said, emphasizing that the city needs more officers to keep residents and visitors safe especially during the 2026 FIFA World Cup and the 2028 LA Olympics. Among the 100 arrest, Bass and LAPD officials did not say how many of them broke into dozens of homes in the San Fernando Valley in the recent weeks.
Los Angeles police seek help finding Westlake hit-and-run driver who injured woman in her 60s
Los Angeles Police Department detectives are still looking for a hit-and-run driver who struck a woman in her 60s in the Westlake area in April, causing severe injuries. It happened on April 10 at around 8:50 p.m. when the victim was crossing Olympic Boulevard in an unmarked crosswalk, according to a news release from LAPD officials. Police say that an unidentified vehicle driving eastbound through the intersection with Beacon Avenue struck the woman and fled from the area. The woman was taken to a nearby hospital with severe injuries, police said. As their investigation continues, detectives ask anyone with more information to come forward. They did not provide details on the suspect or vehicle involved in the crash. A reward of up to $25,000 has been offered to anyone who is able to provide details leading to the identification, arrest and conviction of the alleged hit-and-run driver through the Los Angeles Administrative Code Hit-and-Run Reward Program Trust Fund. Police asked people who may know more to contact Officer Herrera with the Central Traffic Division at 213-833-3713.
Burglary reported in San Fernando Valley hours after officials announce arrests
Just hours after officials announced arrests connected to a string of residential burglaries, another one was reported in the San Fernando Valley. According to a Los Angeles Police Department spokesperson, the incident took place just before 1:45 a.m. Wednesday in the 5000 block of Bluebell Avenue, which is located in the Valley Village neighborhood. The person who lives in the home was too shaken to appear on camera but told KTLA that three masked suspects broke in while she was inside and took off within minutes. The LAPD spokesperson was unable to confirm that detail, or any other details, right away. It was unclear whether anything was taken from the home. The alleged break-in came less than a day after L.A. Mayor Karen Bass and other officials announced arrests in a string of burglaries mainly plaguing the San Fernando Valley. At a press conference Tuesday, Mayor Karen Bass said there has been a 30% reduction year-to-date in property crimes and burglaries.
Missing 14-year-old Southern California girl found safe
A missing 14-year-old Southern California girl was found safe, authorities confirmed Tuesday night. Crystal Navarrete, 14, was initially reported missing on May 12, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. At the time, she was considered critically missing and was last seen walking on the 800 block of 119th Street in Los Angeles around 8:15 a.m. Her family has not heard from her since and were very concerned for her well-being. On Tuesday night, LAPD said the girl was “found and reunited with her family.” No further details, including the circumstances of her discovery, were released.
D4vd murder case: Singer to face key hearing on charges he killed, dismembered teen
A preliminary hearing in the murder case against David Anthony Burke, the 21-year-old singer better known as D4vd, will go forward at the end of June, setting a timeline for when more detailed evidence about the gruesome killing and dismemberment of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez will become public. Burke — who prosecutors say sexually abused the teen for a year before stabbing her to death and mutilating her corpse last year — will face the hearing on June 29, attorneys said during a brief hearing Tuesday morning. After the singer’s arrest in April, his legal team pushed for an immediate preliminary hearing — in which a judge determines if prosecutors have enough evidence to bring a case to trial — but they backed off after prosecutors began turning over what they have described as a massive amount of digital evidence linking Burke to the teenager’s brutal slaying. Burke has pleaded not guilty in the case. The hearing is expected to last at least five days. A status conference hearing will take place June 17.
Scam of elderly man goes so well, con artists strike again. But their timing is horrible
First came the suspicious, unexpected text message. Included in the communication was a return phone number and a plea to call “immediately.” By evening’s end, a frazzled Ventura senior citizen — during a cloak-and-dagger assignation — had uttered a secret code to a person who claimed to be law enforcement, then handed him $25,000. It was the culmination of a well-executed scam — so successful that the San Gabriel Valley pair behind the scheme decided to try it again, authorities said. They contacted the same Ventura senior, and this time, they asked for double, authorities said. But the victim, realizing he’d been duped, had reached out to police. And the scammers contacted him right when he was in the middle of an interview with detectives, authorities said. In the end, Shaohua Sun, 39, of Monterey Park and Yanwen Gu, 40, of Rosemead were arrested by Ventura police detectives and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit elder abuse. The charge carried special allegations of the victim being particularly vulnerable and crimes indicating planning, sophistication and professionalism.
California woman pleads guilty in deadly OnlyFans fetish encounter
A 32-year-old woman from San Bernardino County who was arrested in February 2025 and charged with murder in a filmed OnlyFans fetish encounter gone tragically wrong has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of involuntary manslaughter. Michaela Rylaarsdam opted for the plea deal last week, the Los Angeles Times reported. The plea acknowledges that she acted with disregard for human life, though without intent to kill. According to investigators, Rylaarsdam began communicating with 56-year-old Michael Dale, an Escondido resident, between March and April 2023 after he spotted her on a website typically used for escort and stripper services. In the weeks that followed, Dale paid more than $11,000 to engage in conversations with Rylaarsdam and, ultimately, to have her come to his home and perform fetish sex acts, according to court documents. In text messages reviewed by investigators, Dale requested that Rylaarsdam wrap him in Saran wrap “like a mummy” and glue women’s boots to his feet.
Public Safety News
1 dead, 2 critically injured in South Los Angeles crash involving 6 vehicles
One person was killed and two people were critically injured in a multi-vehicle crash in South Los Angeles on Tuesday afternoon. It happened at around 2 p.m. near Vermont Street and Colden Avenue, according to the California Highway Patrol, which is investigating the incident as it happened in an unincorporated part of Los Angeles County. Circumstances leading up to what caused the crash remain under investigation, but police said that one person was pronounced dead at the scene by Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics. At least six cars were involved in the crash, police said. Social media video of the aftermath showed several cars with significant damage, including one that appeared to have been cut in half. One black SUV had overturned onto its roof and was stopped on a center divider on Vermont Avenue. Debris was scattered across the intersection as authorities surveyed the scene.
Florence-Manchester Commercial Building Catches Fire
Firefighters knocked down a fire Wednesday at a one-story row of commercial businesses in the Florence-Manchester neighborhood of South Los Angeles. Fire crews responded at 3:41 a.m. Wednesday to 725 E. Manchester Ave. between Stanford and McKinley avenues, where they began attacking the flames in an offensive mode. They eventually gained control of the fire and extinguished it in 19 minutes, said LAFD spokeswoman Jennifer Middleton. It took 34 firefighters about 20 minutes to knock down the blaze. Google maps show a hair salon, a medical clinic, stalls selling clothing and convenience items side by side at the address. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Hantavirus outbreak linked to cruise reaches 11 reported cases; quarantine continues in U.S.
The World Health Organization says the hantavirus outbreak linked to a cruise ship has now reached 11 total reported cases worldwide, nine of which have been confirmed. This comes as all passengers continue to be held in quarantine at locations around the world, including in the United States. Four Californians are among those currently quarantining, three identified as passengers on the cruise ship. Two of the passengers from California were evacuated from the ship over the weekend and are in a federal quarantine unit. Another, a Santa Clara County resident who disembarked before the outbreak was detected, is being monitored at home. The fourth, a Sacramento County resident, was reportedly quarantined at home after being exposed on an international flight. Sixteen Americans are being monitored at a medical unit in Nebraska, and two are in Atlanta. One of those people has tested positive and another is experiencing mild symptoms.
