Tearful Mom Describes Horror As Socialite Sped Through Intersection, Killing Her 2 Sons

Nancy Iskander sobbed at the memory, her voice quivering. The mother of four recounted how she saw a black sport utility vehicle speeding toward the intersection where she and her three sons were crossing. She grabbed her 5-year-old, Zachary, pulling him to safety, as that SUV barreled through the marked crosswalk in Westlake. The high-powered vehicle flew past. But another SUV — a white Mercedes — was following closely behind, Iskander said. Her older sons were farther into the intersection, and Iskander said she lost sight of them when she jumped out of the way. “I saw two cars coming toward us at an insane, crazy speed,” Iskander testified Monday in the murder trial of Rebecca Grossman, who is charged in the deaths of the Iskander children, 11-year-old Mark and 8-year-old Jacob. “I didn’t see her hit the boys. I saw her pass where the boys were, and I heard the crash.” Los Angeles County prosecutors say Grossman was behind the wheel of the white Mercedes that fatally struck the brothers in September 2020. Authorities say she was driving as fast as 81 mph and traveled a quarter-mile after slamming into the children before her car shut down. “I heard the loud noise, and I heard the driver of that car kept going,” Iskander told jurors. “I started screaming, ‘I can’t find them.’

Los Angeles Times

West Side Business Owner Sentenced For Trafficking Used, Counterfeit Medical Devices

A Tarzana man was sentenced Monday to 30 months in prison for running a nearly $6 million scheme in which he sold used skin- tightening medical devices that were deliberately misbranded as new, as well as counterfeit devices that he claimed were to be used with fat-reducing laser machines. Kambiz Youabian, 50, was also ordered to pay $5.93 million in restitution, forfeit $1.68 million in seized assets, and serve three years of supervised release after he is released from custody, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. He pleaded guilty one year ago to federal counts of mail fraud and introducing a misbranded medical device into interstate commerce. Youabian owned and operated MSY Technologies Inc., a West Los Angeles- based company that did business under the names Thermagen and Global Electronic Supplies. From March 2016 to June 2022, he bought used transducers, which are medical devices used to tighten the skin of dermatology patients by delivering ultrasound energy to a patient's skin. Used properly, transducers are designed to provide no more than 2,400 treatments. After this number is reached, the devices are considered depleted and should be disposed of in accordance with health code regulations.

Westside Current

9-Hour Standoff In Culver City Jewelry Store Leads To 2 Arrests

Two people were arrested over nine hours overnight during a standoff with police at a Culver City jewelry store. It all started just after 10 p.m., on Jan. 27, in the Ace of Diamonds Custom Jewelry store on Uplander Way in Culver City. Officers were called out to the business after an alarm had tripped. When they got there, they determined two people got in through the roof. Police said that the noises coming from the inside of the store led officers to believe that the thieves were trying to break into the business' safe. Police used drones to track the thieves inside. Officers took one of the alleged thieves into custody just over an hour later, but the second suspect barricaded himself inside and refused to come out. The resultant standoff lasted approximately nine hours and involved K9 officers, crisis negotiators, drones and SWAT teams. Just before 8:30 a.m. the second alleged thief surrendered to officers. Police were able to recover a gun from the scene. Officers said they believed it was taken from the business. 

FOX 11

4 Shot During Street Takeover In Compton: LASD

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said four people were shot during a street takeover in Compton Sunday night. Deputies were dispatched to the intersection of Central Avenue and Alondra Boulevard around 10:40 p.m. for a report of cars blocking the street and engaging in dangerous driving. When they arrived on scene, deputies found that the involved vehicles had fled the area, leaving behind three people who had been shot. All three of those unidentified victims were treated on scene before being taken to the hospital by ambulance. Not long after, staff at a local hospital called authorities to report that they were treating a gunshot victim. Deputies later linked that fourth shooting victim to that same street takeover. All four victims were last listed in stable condition, the Sheriff’s Department said. The shooting and the street takeover are both under investigation, but no suspect information is available at this time.

KTLA 5

Gruesome Murders In Mojave Desert Connected To Illicit Marijuana Grow Operation, Sheriff Says

Authorities said they have arrested suspects in connection to the six people found dead in a remote area of the Mojave Desert in San Bernardino County last week, which apparently stemmed from a dispute over marijuana. The killings happened on January 23, 2024, in El Mirage, just 10 miles north of Adelanto, around 8:15 p.m., according to the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department. When crews arrived at the scene, near Lessing Avenue and Shadow Mountain Road, they originally found five deceased individuals. A sixth individual was discovered in the morning. Sergeant Michael Warrick, with SBSD's Specialized Investigations Division's Homicide Detail, spoke at a press conference on Monday to provide additional information on the investigation. "Dispatchers received a 911 call from a subject who spoke Spanish. The caller told dispatchers that he was shot, but he did not know the location he was at," Warrick said. The call ended before they could get further information, but the dispatchers were able to trace the phone's location to where the bodies were found. Due to the remote location, SBSD requested assistance from California Highway Patrol, who lent an airship to their search for the scene of the report. 

CBS 2

19 People Charged In Connection To Shipping Drugs From California To South Carolina

19 people have been charged for shipping more than 255 packages of drugs from California to South Carolina, according to the United States Department of Justice and KTLA sister station WJZY. One of the suspects, 35-year-old Archi Arsenio Caldwell, was sentenced to more than 16 years in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine, crack cocaine, methamphetamine, fentanyl and marijuana. Officials say he also pleaded guilty to distributing crack cocaine and money laundering. After his 16-year sentence, Caldwell will serve a 10-year term of court-ordered supervision. The investigation revealed that members of the group were flying to California and having drugs shipped back to the Rock Hill and Charlotte area. Caldwell helped members of the group get flights to California and purchase illegal drugs. Officials say he also flew to California himself to purchase the drugs for other members and ship the packages back. After the drugs were shipped back to South Carolina, the group distributed the drugs to local dealers.

KTLA 5

Illinois K-9 Shot, Killed By Suspect

A K-9 officer has been shot and killed while protecting her handler, according to the Friends of Rockford Police K-9 nonprofit. Rockford Police Department K-9 Nyx was fatally shot on Jan. 28. “K-9 Nyx paid the ultimate sacrifice while serving and protecting this community. I ask that you all keep K-9 Officer Vargas, the entire K-9 Unit, and Nyx in your thoughts and prayers,” Rockford Chief of Police Carla Redd stated.; “K-9 Nyx is family and we are truly thankful for her service to the Rockford Police Department.” The shooting occurred when officers responding to a call were searching for a suspect, WREX reports. When the suspect was located, they exchanged gunfire with officers. The suspect fatally shot K-9 Nyx. Nyx was trained in narcotics detection, evidence recovery human tracking and apprehension, according to the Friends of Rockford Police K-9 nonprofit. 

PoliceOne

Georgia Trooper Dies In Patrol Vehicle Crash

After just a year on the job, a state trooper was killed in a crash while attempting a traffic stop, the Georgia Department of Public Safety said Monday. “The Department of Public Safety sends its sincerest condolences and prayers to Trooper Jimmy Cenescar’s family and co-workers,” the agency said in a media release. “Please keep Trooper Cenescar’s family in your prayers as they cope with the loss of their loved one.” Investigators believe Cenescar was attempting to stop a motorcycle for a traffic violation on I-85 North near Old Peachtree Road in Gwinnett County when his vehicle left the roadway and struck an embankment. Cenescar was taken to Northside Gwinnett Hospital, where he died from his injuries. Cenescar is the fifth officer to die in the line of duty across the country in 2024, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page, which tracks law enforcement deaths. Of the five, two have been from Georgia. Sunday night, Gov. Brian Kemp offered his condolences in a social media post. “Marty, the girls, and I are truly heartbroken by the tragic passing of one of Georgia’s finest,” Kemp said. “This is the ultimate sacrifice and our hearts and prayers are with the family and loved ones mourning this loss and all law enforcement tonight as they serve their fellow Georgians.”

PoliceOne

Michigan Officer Walks Onto Frozen Pond, Saves Boy Who Fell Through Ice

A police officer walked onto a frozen pond Tuesday morning and ended up falling into the water, but he still managed to save a 12-year-old boy who had broken through the ice. Both Dundee officer Joe Schumaker and the boy were OK after the rescue at a pond located on the property of a Cabela’s outdoors store, according to a news release from the police department. Police say a truck driver for Hungry Howie’s was making a delivery to a location by the pond Tuesday morning when the boy fell through the ice. The driver heard the boy screaming for help and called 911. “He was in the right place at the right time,” the news release says. Rescuers got to the scene in about three minutes and saw the boy struggling to stay afloat in about 20 feet of water. Schumaker grabbed a flotation device with a rope and walked onto the ice, but soon broke through himself, police say. Schumaker still was able to wade to the boy. Both were then pulled to safety by police officers and firefighters, as well as bystanders. The boy was taken to a hospital in Toledo for treatment. Schumaker was treated and the scene and then returned to work. Police did not say how the boy ended up on the pond and falling through the ice. 

PoliceOne

1 Person Hospitalized After Koreatown Apartment Complex Fire

One person was hospitalized after Los Angeles Fire Department crews battled a fire Monday night at a four-story apartment complex in Koreatown. The fire was reported at around 10:15 p.m. on the 3300 block of W. 2nd Street. Three floors of the building consisted of apartment units while the first floor was a parking lot, the LAFD said. A crew of over 70 firefighters battled the flames and helped residents evacuate the building. Firefighters cut holes into the roof to assist with ventilation and were able to knock down the fire in 25 minutes, LAFD said. One person was taken to the hospital due to smoke inhalation and an unknown number of residents were displaced from their apartments due to the smoke damage, according to LAFD. The patient was in fair condition. The Red Cross was also on scene. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

NBC 4

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.