Infant Died With Broken Bones, A Burn And THC In Her System. Mother Ordered To Stand Trial

Nearly six years after a 9-month-old infant was found not breathing, with fractured bones and a burn on her leg, the child’s mother is headed to court to face murder charges. A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge Wednesday ordered Ivette Melissa Gonzalez, 32, to stand trial in the death of her daughter, Selena. On May 5, 2018, Gonzalez called paramedics from a laundromat near her Los Angeles home. According to investigators, she’d run there with the baby in tow to report that her daughter was not breathing. Firefighters who responded found a “chaotic scene” in which a woman was performing chest compressions on a baby. Los Angeles Fire Department Capt. Cody Weireter said the infant was “blue in color.” The baby was taken to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead. “She said that the baby had stopped breathing after feeding her some rice,” former Los Angeles Police Det. Moses Castillo told The Times. Castillo, who testified at Wednesday’s preliminary hearing, said: “She thought that the rice, maybe it was too much and it was blocking her airways, so she put her on the floor and punched her on the stomach in hopes that it would expel the rice.” Gonzalez was arrested the day she called paramedics, but the district attorney’s office deferred filing criminal charges until after Selena’s autopsy report was completed, said Castillo, who was an investigator of child abuse cases in the LAPD’s juvenile division at the time of Selena’s death and retired in 2020. He was the initial lead investigator on Selena’s case and met with Gonzalez in the hospital the day of her daughter’s death.

Los Angeles Times

New Murder Charge Filed On Man Accused Of Killing Man Found In 55-Gallon Drum

A man who was already charged with the killing of a man whose body was discovered in a 55-gallon drum on a beach in Malibu is set to be arraigned next week on a new murder count stemming from a man's slaying in Inglewood nearly a year ago. Joshua Lee Simmons, 37, is due in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom next Friday to be arraigned on the amended criminal complaint, which includes a murder charge involving the Jan. 20, 2023, killing of Anthony Soloc, 50, who was shot in the head in Inglewood. The amended complaint includes the special-circumstance allegation of multiple murders, along with allegations that Simmons personally used an assault weapon and a semi-automatic pistol. Simmons was charged last October with murder and a handgun use allegation in connection with the death of 32-year-old Javonnta Marshann Murphy, whose body was found last July 31 inside the 55-gallon drum in the 23200 block of Pacific Coast Highway. A lifeguard spotted the same barrel the next morning and was able to bring it to shore, then opened it and discovered the body inside. Sheriff's homicide investigators determined that Murphy was shot, killed and stuffed inside the barrel. He died of a gunshot wound to the head, according to records from the county medical examiner's office.

Westside Current

Man Arrested In Downtown Shooting

A man suspected in a shooting Thursday evening west of Union Station was arrested. Los Angeles Police Department officers were called to the 800 block of North Alameda Street, south of East Cesar Chavez Avenue ,at 10:27 p.m., Officer Tony Im told City News Service. Officers took the suspect into custody near the scene, Im said. No victims were immediately located, but Im said police had established a crime scene at the location and were searching for possible victims.

MyNewsLA

LAPD's Online Reporting Website Adds ‘Hate Incident' Category Amid Rise In Hate Crimes

The number of reported hate crimes in Southern California is rising, and the Los Angeles Police Department wants to make it easier for people to report them. Authorities say a large number of incidents go unreported, prompting LAPD to update its online reporting system. "We hope and look to this avenue as an added way for people to have access to their public law enforcement agency to convey these instances," said LAPD Chief Michel Moore. The Community Online Reporting System, also known as CORS, has been around since 2016. It allows people to report traffic accidents and other non-emergency issues, and now, hate incidents. "In 2022 to 2023, our hate crimes are up 15%, but antisemitic hate crimes are up 51% and anti-Muslim, anti-Arab hate crimes are up 140%," said LAPD Assistant Chief Blake Chow. Officials say sometimes, a hate incident doesn't legally fall into the category of a hate crime. However, authorities still want to record it and believe online reporting allows them to gather information faster. "Your reports are critically important," said Joumana Silyan-Saba with the Los Angeles Civil + Human Rights and Equity Department. "No door is the wrong door when it comes to reporting hate incidents and hate crimes." LAPD takes hate incidents seriously and say they're always concerned they could escalate. Police list them as a top priority and are handled by the detective bureau.

ABC 7

Ex-Convict Arrested On Firearms, Trademark Infringement Charges

A 34-year-old ex-convict who allegedly was carrying a ”ghost gun” and suspected of selling counterfeit Rolex watches to an undercover police officer was taken into custody Thursday in San Fernando Valley neighborhood of Winnetka. The Los Angeles Police Department’s Commercial Crimes Division, Illicit Pharmaceutical and Counterfeit Unit arrested Albert Bantug at 11.a.m. near the 20000 block of Vanowen Street, east of Winnetka Avenue, police said. When officers searched Bantung, they found a loaded semi-automatic handgun without any serial numbers or traceable information in his front waistband, police said. The recovered watches were examined at the scene by Rolex representatives and they were found to be counterfeit, in violation of the recorded and registered trademarks, police said. Bantug was booked at the Van Nuys Jail for being a felon in possession of a firearm and trademark infringement.

MyNewsLA

Koreatown Lawyer Charged With Money Laundering, Tax Evasion, Obstruction

A federal grand jury indicted a Koreatown lawyer with multiple felonies arising from an alleged $2.1 million bribe, which he received while serving as an officer of Nigeria’s state-owned oil company in connection with negotiating favorable drilling rights for a subsidiary of a Chinese state-owned oil company, officials announced Thursday. Paulinus Okoronkwo, 67, of Valencia, who practices immigration and personal injury law out of an office in Koreatown, was charged in a five-count indictment returned on Wednesday, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Okoronkwo is charged in Los Angeles federal court with three counts of engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from specified unlawful activity, one count of tax evasion, and one count of obstruction of justice. He is expected to be arraigned in downtown Los Angeles in the coming weeks. According to the indictment, Okoronkwo — a dual citizen of the United States and Nigeria — was a foreign official who served as the general manager of the upstream division of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corp. The state-owned company is the entity through which Nigeria’s government developed that nation’s fossil fuel and natural gas reserves, including through partnerships with foreign oil companies. In this role, Okoronkwo owed a fiduciary duty to the NNPC and the Nigerian people and was a public official, according to the DOJ.

MyNewsLA

At Least 5 Hospitalized After Shooting In Compton

Firefighters took at least five people to the hospital after a shooting in a Compton neighborhood. The shooting happened at about 2:30 p.m. at the intersection of Alondra Boulevard and Acacia Avenue, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. Deputies originally stated there were eight victims, all in unknown conditions, but updated the count to five later Thursday afternoon. The Compton Fire Department said five people were taken to the hospital following the shooting. Firefighters from the L.A. County Fire Department also said they transported one patient. It's unclear if Compton Fire accounted for this victim in their report. Authorities do not have a suspect in custody.

CBS 2

World Champion Boxer Julio César Chávez Jr. Released From Custody

Mexican boxing world champion Julio César Chávez Jr. was released from police custody on Thursday after he was arrested earlier this week, booking records from the Los Angeles County show. Records from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department showed he faced a charge of illegal possession of an assault rifle. He was subsequently taken to Valley Jail Section. In a statement released by his father, boxing legend Julio César Chávez  Sr., the athlete thanked fans in Spanish for their concerns. “My son Julio was arrested, and we are working together with his lawyers to resolve his legal situation,” Chávez Sr.’s statement read. “It's been a long road, but I’m not losing faith. I pray to God that this is the moment that finally pushes my son toward a useful and happy life.” Further details regarding the boxer’s arrest were not immediately clear.

NBC 4

Loved Ones Searching For L.A. County Teenager

Loved ones are searching for a missing teenager who disappeared in Palmdale last week. The teen was identified as Olivia Ann Battieste, 18, by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. She was last seen on Jan. 4 on the 40900 block of Marble Court, authorities said. Battieste is described as a Black female standing 5 feet 8 inches tall and weighing 250 pounds. She has black hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing a black shirt and black sweatpants. The teen’s family has not heard from her since and is concerned for her well-being. A photo of Battieste was released in hopes the public may have spotted her. Anyone who may know of Battieste’s whereabouts or has information is asked to call the LASD’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. Anonymous tips can be provided to “Crime Stoppers” by dialing 800-222-8477 or online at lacrimestoppers.org.

KTLA 5

LAFD: Fire Damages Sanitation Truck, Flames Prevented From Spreading To Brush

Firefighters Thursday extinguished a fire on a Beverly Crest road that ignited in a sanitation truck, and prevented the flames from spreading to nearby brush. The fire was reported about 9:20 am. Thursday in the 9000 block of Alto Cedro Drive, south of Mulholland Drive and east of Coldwater Canyon, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. "A sanitation truck caught fire and, per protocol, dumped the burning contents in the middle of the street," the LAFD said in a statement. "Firefighters arrived and quickly deployed hose lines as the roadside brush was being singed by flames stoked by the wind," the LAFD said. "Crews prevented the fire from extending into the brush, and extinguished the burning trash in the road in 22 minutes." Winds were blowing at roughly 13 mph in the area at the time of the fire, the LAFD reported. No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire was under investigation.

Westside Current

Man Dead After 4-Car Crash In Hancock Park

Authorities responded to a four-vehicle crash Thursday in Hancock Park that left one person dead, authorities confirmed to KTLA. Officers with the Los Angeles Police Department responded to calls of the accident near the intersection of Beverly Boulevard and McCadden Place at around 3:43 p.m. At the scene, authorities found an approximately 80-year-old man who was not conscious or breathing and called for an ambulance. Medical personnel with the Los Angeles Fire Department responded to the scene, but confirmed that they did not take anyone to the hospital. Video of the scene captured by Sky5 showed the scrum of cars in the road with a white canopy up against what appears to be a tan colored SUV. Images posted to the Citizen App showed that same vehicle, which sustained significant damage, surrounded by first responders, and what appeared to be a body covered by a sheet in the road. Details are limited and it’s unclear what may have led up to the crash, but no other injuries were reported.  

KTLA 5

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.