Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor WALNUT – A Pomona man and West Covina man were arrested and stolen property was recovered as catalytic converter and trailer thefts continue to plague the San Gabriel Valley.
Pomona resident Alberto Huerta and West Covina man Moises Beltran were taken into custody. A subsequent search warrant in Riverside County yielded eight trailers, which had VINs removed, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Walnut/Diamond Bar Station in a March 9 announcement. Detectives are attempting to locate each theft victim. Huerta and Beltran were booked on suspicion of grand theft. Cities have seen an alarming and steady increase in catalytic converter thefts during the pandemic. Thieves tend to target trucks and SUVs, because the taller vehicles make it easier to fit under them. Vehicles currently targeted are the Toyota Prius, Honda Accord and Toyota trucks, according to the Sheriff’s Walnut/Diamond Bar Station. In December of 2020, Walnut Station detectives reported 37 catalytic converter thefts, the total averaged more than 1 theft per day, according to the Sheriff’s Walnut/Diamond Bar Station. Fontana Police officers announced the January 16 arrest of Pomona man Freddy Baltazar. Evidence seized connected Baltazar to numerous catalytic converter thefts in the Diamond Bar, Walnut and Rowland Heights areas. To help stem the tide of thefts, the Sheriff’s Walnut/Diamond Bar Station hosted a series of events for residents to etch serial numbers into their vehicle’s catalytic converters free of charge. Deputies offered a few tips to help make it tougher for thieves to steal catalytic converters: • When possible, park in well-lit areas and close to building entrances. • Park your car inside the garage. • Have the catalytic converter welded to your car's frame, which may make it harder to steal. • Consider engraving your vehicle identification number (VIN) on the catalytic converter — this may help alert a scrap dealer that it was stolen and make it easier to identify the owner. • Calibrate your car's alarm to set off when it detects vibration. • Invest in a catalytic converter anti-theft device. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor WALNUT - A 31-year-old man was found dead inside of a vehicle near a public park in Walnut Christmas Day, authorities said.
Ryan Anthony Mendoza, a resident of Walnut, was identified by Nani Cholakians, investigator with the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner. His body was found inside a vehicle near Avenida Deseo and Paseo Perdido, Which is near Lemon Creek Park. While the autopsy has yet to be completed, investigators suspect suicide, Cholakians told SGV CityWatch. Deputies responded to the scene around 3:41 p.m. December 25, according to Sgt. Reyes of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Diamond Bar/Walnut Station. The body was found in a silver Nissan Leaf, Reyes told SGV CityWatch. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor WALNUT – A critical onsite worker has contracted COVID-19 and was on campus recently, the community college publicized Wednesday. The worker was last on campus in Building 46 and Building 46A between June 15 and June 18. The worker is self-isolating at home and is recovering, campus officials said. The affected buildings were vacated and thoroughly cleaned, campus officials said. “The college is actively tracing the individual’s steps and contacting employees who came in contact with the individual. In addition, the contact tracing includes the collection of further information from those in contact with the individual, their wellness and their subsequent contacts,” campus officials said in a written statement.
Those who may have been in contact with the worker were provided testing instructions and instructed them to self-isolate for 14 days. Mt. San Antonio College has remained closed since March 19 after the statewide Safer at Home order forced all non-essential businesses closed. Classes have moved to virtual instruction and classes remain so. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor WALNUT - Deputies seek a man accused of assault with a deadly weapon after he allegedly broke a window and threw broken glass at a Chevron worker’s face. The incident occurred Valentines Day at the Chevron Station, 792 N. Nogales St. Deputies did not specify what led the the assault. After the attack, the suspect fled with a man and woman in an older model gold four-door Ford SUV.
The suspect is a Hispanic man, 35 to 45 years old, weighs 200 pounds and stands 5 feet 10 inches to 6 feet tall. Anyone who can identify the suspect is urged to call the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Walnut/Diamond Bar Station at 909-595-2264. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor WALNUT - The man who phoned in a fake robbery at the Chevron gas station was finally detained around 1 a.m. and later hospitalized for a mental evaluation after fleeing the car while stripping away his clothing, a sheriff’s lieutenant said. The unidentified man is accused of phoning in a robbery at the Chevron gas station, 1203 North Grand Ave. Wednesday afternoon. Soon after deputies arrived, they determined he made the call, according to Lt. Tom Giandomenico of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Diamond Bar/Walnut Station. “He called the robbery in himself. We determined that pretty much soon after we were there,” Giandomenico told SGV CityWatch. The subject, described as a white man in his 30s, refused to leave his red car, setting off an hours long barricade as deputies attempted to get the men to surrender peacefully. Multiple nonlethal rounds were fired through the car’s windows, breaking them, But the man still refused to exit.
“We couldn’t get the guy out of the car and we didn’t want to push the issue and create any type of unnecessary force, so we decided to have the fire department look at the guy,” Giandomenico told SGV CityWatch. “They deemed he wasn’t in distress, So we decided to de-escalate the situation and leave.” The man remained in his car for many more hours until he decided to leave around 1 a.m. Thursday. The man ran eastbound on Temple Avenue towards Bonita Drive near Mount San Antonio College as he remove the articles of clothing until deputies detained him and had him hospitalized. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor WALNUT – A Sig Alert in still in effect for the No. 5 lane of the eastbound 60 freeway at South Lemon Avenue Monday. The crash was reported to the CHP at 5:25 a.m. January 13. A blue sedan struck the guardrail and landed on top of the guardrail. No other vehicle was involved in the crash, according to California Highway Patrol traffic logs. The driver died at the scene and is only described as a man.
A one-hour Sig Alert was issued for the No. 5 lane at 6 a.m. It is still in effect, according to Officer Peter Nicholson of the CHP Traffic Management Center. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor WALNUT - Detectives questioned the parents of an infant who died after being transported to a nearby hospital Wednesday night. Deputies were called to a parking lot in the northwest corner of East Amar Road and North Grand Ave., November 13 at 5:45 p.m. The baby boy was transported to a hospital and pronounced dead, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Information Bureau. Firefighters were dispatched to the scene initially for a victim in full arrest, according to Los Angeles County Fire Department Dispatch Supervisor Martin Rangel.
The infant was pronounced dead at 6:22 p.m., the Sheriff’s Information Bureau said. It is unclear If either the mother or the father detained at the scene have been arrested yet. The Sheriff’s Information Bureau is awaiting a status update from the sheriffs homicide Lieutenant handling the investigation. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor WALNUT - One lane of northbound Grand Avenue at College Vista Way and all southbound lanes have re-opened after a gas leak forced an hours-long closure.
The roadway re-opened within the last hour after workers successfully closed off the gas leak, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Walnut/Diamond Bar Station. The gas line was ruptured just after noon Wednesday, November 13. Authorities believed the roadway would Remain closed until possibly at least 10 p.m. Authorities closed Grand Avenue from Amar Road/Temple Avenue to Cameron Avenue. The College Vista neighborhood sheltered in place during the gas leak. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor WALNUT - Investigators are working to determine the cause of a fire that damaged a Walnut home Monday night. A reported patio fire burned behind a home in the 100 block of South Dommer Avenue in Walnut just before 11:50 p.m. November 11. The fire eventually spread into two rooms inside the home, according to Los Angeles County Fire Dispatch Supervisor Michael Pittman. There were no reported injuries. Building inspectors were called to examine the structure, Pitman said. It is unclear if the structure is habitable. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor WALNUT - Two women were jailed Thursday after deputies discovered narcotics in a stolen vehicle after the driver ran away September 25. The driver that ran from deputies was caught after a containment search — methamphetamine and heroin were found within the vehicle taken in Redondo Beach, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Walnut/Diamond Bar Station. Deputies responded to CubeSmart Self Storage, 301 Lemon Creek Dr., around 1 p.m. Thursday to a disturbance call and located a vehicle occupied by two women leaving the area. Deputies conducted a traffic stop after the driver committed a vehicle code violation.
The driver immediately ran away, but was found in a nearby business complex. The passenger remained at the scene and was arrested. Both identified women were booked on suspicion of taking a vehicle without the owner’s consent and for methamphetamine and heroin possession. |
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