Law Enforcement News

Number Of LA Killings Falls In 2022 But Is High Compared To Pre-COVID
The number of Los Angeles homicides fell in 2022, but it was still far higher than before the COVID-19 pandemic set in, according to Los Angeles Police Department figures. LAPD’s preliminary count through New Year’s Eve shows there were 382 homicides in the city last year. That was down 5% from the 402 killings in 2021, which was the highest recorded number of killings in Los Angeles since at least 2010, according to police records. But last year’s total was still almost 50% more than the number of killings in L.A. in 2019, when it stood at 258. Last year’s homicides included headline-grabbing havoc: In May, police say, a West Hills mother killed three of her children in their home with the aid of a 16-year-old. In September, gunfire broke out during a baseball game and car show at a San Pedro park, killing two men and leaving five injured; four men were later arrested. Such stories belied the actual picture of crime in the city, where the pace of overall violence slowed in multiple categories. Last year, besides homicides, nearly every other type of violent crime fell. Reported sexual assaults and rapes fell by more than 10%.
LA Daily News

Tioni Theus Case: 1 Year Later Murder Of Young South LA Girl Remains Unsolved
It's been exactly one year since 16-year-old Tioni Theus was killed and dumped alongside the 110 Freeway in South Los Angeles. Her family, community and police are still searching for the suspects responsible for her murder. "If they're watching, they can just turn themselves in or if someone knows something, a family member, just turn yourself in. What if it was your family member. This was someone's child." Theus was last seen January 7, 2021 by her dad, when she told him she was meeting a friend to go to a party. The 16-year-old had been staying with dad, since her mother was placed in an assisted living facility, to recuperate from a serious hit-and-run. Her body was found by California Highway Patrol on the side of the freeway a day later. Investigators say she was shot in the neck and her body was dumped on the west Manchester Avenue onramp near S. Figueroa street. "This is one thing that I would never put on the worst, the worst of the enemy," a family member said during a press conference Saturday. A $115,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of a suspect.
FOX 11

Triple Shooting In Hollywood Leaves 1 Dead, 2 Hospitalized; Suspect At Large
One man was killed and two others wounded in a triple shooting early Saturday morning in Hollywood, authorities said. Officers responded shortly before 1:30 a.m. to the intersection of Hollywood Boulevard and Cherokee Avenue, where they learned that the victims -- three men in their 30s -- were leaving an establishment on Hollywood Boulevard when a suspect fired several shots at them, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. The man killed was identified by police as 32-year-old Kevin Spears from Hemet. After being treated at the scene by Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics, the other two victims were taken to a hospital, where they were listed in stable condition, police said. There was no suspect description and the wounded victims have not been cooperating with officers, the LAPD said. The shooting closed a stretch of Hollywood Boulevard while police conducted their investigation.
ABC 7

Man Found Fatally Shot Under Sixth Street Bridge, Suspect At Large
Police are searching for a suspect after a man was found fatally shot in Boyle Heights on Friday night. The victim is a 25-year-old Hispanic man. His identity has not been released by Los Angeles Police. Officers responded to reports of a shooting under the Sixth Street Bridge near 6th and Mission around 10 p.m. When officers arrived, they found the victim lying on a roundabout platform leading to the ridge, said LAPD. The victim was transported to a local hospital where he was later pronounced dead. Police say the suspect and the victim were attending an event during which an altercation erupted. The suspect fired multiple shots at the victim before fleeing the scene, authorities said. Police believe the shooting may be gang-related. The weapon used in the fatal shooting is a 9mm handgun, LAPD confirmed. The suspect is described as a Hispanic male between 18-20 years old. He stands 5 feet 4 inches tall, weighs 120 pounds and was wearing a black ski mask. The suspect’s vehicle is described as a gray Dodge Durango SUV that was last seen driving on Mission heading towards Alameda.
KTLA 5

Man Arrested For Starting RV Fire That Killed One In Exposition Park
A man was behind bars on Friday after being arrested in connection with a fatal fire in Exposition Park on Jan. 2. According to Los Angeles Police Department, Danny Reece, 46, was arrested for lighting the RV fire that killed 65-year-old homeless man Jerry Israel on Monday. Israel's body was discovered inside of a recreational vehicle in the 1100 block of Browning Boulevard after firefighters extinguished the flames at around 11:30 p.m. During their investigation, police found that Reece and Israel had been involved in some sort of dispute hours before the fire. He was first arrested Monday about an hour before the fire first began, but was released shortly after. It was then that police believe he lit something on fire and threw it into the RV. Police again arrested Reece on Tuesday after interviewing several witnesses and reviewing video evidence. He was found a short distance from the scene of the fire.
CBS 2

Two Hip-Hop Producers Arrested After LAPD Recovers Stockpile Of Guns In Studio City
Police arrested two music producers whom they discovered with a cache of assault weapons and ammunition inside a Studio City home, the Los Angeles Police Department said. The men, DeAvonte Kimble, 30, and Max Lord, 31, were taken into custody Wednesday after a barricade situation during which an LAPD SWAT team was called into action, according to police. When police entered the home and conducted a search, they found “several assault rifles, handguns, and 3 firearm suppressors, high-capacity magazines, assault rifle building parts/components, and thousands of rounds of ammunition,” the department said in a news release. Kimble was arrested on suspicion of illegal firearm possession in Chicago in 2018 alongside rapper G Herbo, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. He was listed as a producer on G Herbo’s album “25”. LAPD sources confirmed that Kimble is a Compton-based hip-hop producer for several rappers. Kimble was charged by LAPD with assault with a deadly weapon, though police did not disclose the circumstances surrounding the assault. He was also charged with being a parolee at large. He had his bail revoked and is being held at Van Nuys Jail. Lord was charged with possession of assault rifles and released on $35,000 bail.
LA Times

Westside Man Pleads Guilty To Production Of Child Porn, Enticement Of A Minor
A resident of the Westside of Los Angeles pleaded guilty today to federal criminal charges for using websites and apps such as Snapchat to meet and entice children to engage in sexually explicit conduct via video-chat then take screen shot images and videos of them. Mark David Wallin, 42, of the Del Rey area, pleaded guilty to one count of production of child pornography and one count of enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. Wallin has been in federal custody since his July arrest. According to his plea agreement, from 2019 to August 2021, Wallin used the internet to ``meet'' pre-teen boys and girls -- both abroad and in the United States -- then develop romantic relationships with them online, with the intent to obtain sexually explicit images and videos from the children. Wallin also persuaded the victims to engage in sexually explicit conduct via video-chat, which allowed him to take screen shot images and videos, according to documents filed in Los Angeles federal court.
WestSide Current

Suspicious Device Scene Clears In East Hollywood
The Los Angeles Police Department's Bomb Squad was in East Hollywood, where a suspicious device was rendered safe. The device was reported at 1:03 p.m. in the 1200 block of North Edgemont Street, LAPD Officer Jeff Lee told City News Service. A Google Street View search revealed the area is composed of apartment buildings. The immediate area near the device was evacuated until it was determined there was no longer a threat at 5:52 p.m., Lee said. Details about the device and whether it was detonated were not immediately available.
NBC 4

Former USC Athletics Official Sentenced To Prison In Admissions Scandal
A former USC athletics administrator was sentenced on Friday, January 6, to six months behind bars for her role in the fraud and bribery scheme in which the children of wealthy parents gained admission to some of the country's top universities as fake sports recruits. Donna Heinel, 61, was also ordered to serve two years of supervised release and pay $160,000 in restitution, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts. Heinel pleaded guilty in November 2021 in Boston federal court to "honest services" wire fraud for arranging for more than two dozen students to get into USC in exchange for over $1.3 million in bribes. Prosecutors wrote in court papers that Heinel "abused a position of trust in a manner that significantly facilitated the commission of the offense."
CBS 2

6-Year-Old Student Shoots Teacher At Virginia Elementary School
A teacher was injured after being shot by a student Friday afternoon at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News, according to police and school officials. No students were injured but a teacher was taken to the hospital. Newport News police Chief Steve Drew said a 6-year-old boy was involved in “an altercation” with his teacher before he shot her with a handgun. The extent of the teacher’s injuries was unknown. At least one child who said she witnessed the shooting described the shooter as a classmate. “We believe that once we walked in and had the information we had coming in (the school), we had the individual in custody,” Drew said at a news conference outside the school. “We did not have a situation where someone was going around the school shooting. We had a situation in one particular location where a gunshot was fired.” Drew declined to provide the age of the suspected shooter and would not say if that person was a student. Several parents interviewed outside the school said officers on scene told them a 7-year-old male student shot a teacher.
Daily Press

Public Safety News

Firefighters Battle House Fire In Lynwood; One Person Injured
Firefighters on Friday battled a house fire in Lynwood that left at least one person injured. According to Los Angeles County Fire Department, the fire broke out at around 4:50 p.m. at a home in the 3500 block of E. Agnes Street. It took crews nearly 25 minutes to extinguish the flames, which had spread throughout the home and into the attic. Officers reported that the home was "well-involved" with flames and that one person suffered a moderate to major injury. Firefighters believe the blaze began as a "contents fire," meaning something in the home caught fire.
CBS 2

Fire Damages Unit At Two-Story Apartment Building In Baldwin Hills
A fire Saturday damaged a unit with “excessive storage conditions” at a two-story apartment building in Baldwin Hills, authorities said. The 20 firefighters dispatched at 12:34 p.m. to 4027 W. Palmwood Drive had the blaze out within 14 minutes of their arrival, the Los Angeles Fire Department reported. No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire was under investigation.
MyNewsLA

L.A. County Hospital Seeks Help Identifying Unknown Patients
A hospital is asking for the public’s help to identify two unknown patients who were found in Los Angeles County. The St. Francis Medical Center in Lynwood released images of the patients, hoping someone may recognize them. The first patient is a woman who is about 44 years old. She was found at 1202 E. Firestone Boulevard in the Florence-Graham area. She stands 5 feet 7 inches tall, weighs 140 pounds and has black hair and black eyes. She was found wearing a gray sweatshirt, blue leggings and blue shoes. The second patient is a man around 60 to 70 years old. He responds to the name “Felix” and was found at East Rosecrans Avenue in Bellflower. He stands 6 feet 1 inch tall, weighs 136 pounds and has gray and white hair. He has several tattoos including a peacock on his upper left arm. Anyone who recognizes these individuals is asked to contact the hospital’s Health Benefits Resource Center at 310-900-4521 or 310-900-4526.
KTLA 5

LA County Urges Post-Holiday COVID Testing, Masks For Employees And Students
With kids going back to school and many employees heading back to work after the holidays, Los Angeles County health officials are urging people to test for COVID-19 before returning to workplaces or campuses, and to wear a mask for 10 days to help prevent virus spread. County health officials pointed to the rise of a new virus strain known as XBB.1.5, which is believed to be responsible for 40% of new cases nationally and 9% in California. The rising trend is expected to be reflected soon among Los Angeles County cases, officials said. "With XBB.1.5 rising across the country, I want you to be aware that very soon we could see the new strain become more dominant here in LA County,'' Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said in a statement. "I hope everyone will take action to help minimize the impact, especially knowing it will be felt most by those vulnerable to severe illness. Every day I see examples of how people in L.A. County care for others and this is one more way to do so. We have learned a lot over the past few years and it is important that we all put the knowledge to use to help protect our community.''
NBC 4