Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

ARCADIA - A man missing for nearly one month after he ran from Santa Anita Mall has been returned home, Arcadia Police said.

Matthew Munoz, 22, from Baldwin Park, was found in Santa Barbara by the Santa Barbara Police Department, Arcadia Police announced January 4.

Munoz fled a family member at Westfield Santa Anita Mall, 400 S. Baldwin Ave., Tuesday, December 11. Munoz suffers from a mental condition that causes him to revert to a “child-like” state, according to the Arcadia Police Department.

Munoz’s condition is short-lived and he reverts back to normal, Arcadia Police said.

Munoz was spotted in Alhambra December 17. His photo was taken by a resident and was confirmed to be Munoz, according to his family.

It was unknown how he made his way to Santa Barbara.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

ARCADIA – Two men are still sought after breaking into a home and startling a resident during a burglary December 19, police said.
 
The incident was reported to police around 3:30 a.m. in the 1400 block of San Carlos Road. The resident was asleep and awoke to the two men inside her home, according to the Arcadia Police Department.
 
One suspect asked the resident for money, the other took the Life Alert device from around her neck, Arcadia Police said.
 
The suspects are described as men in dark hooded sweatshirts. They stood about 6 feet tall, had slender builds and the hoods covered their heads.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

ARCADIA – A man was arrested December 14 after he admitted to smoking weed before crashing his vehicle, police said.
 
The crash was reported in the area of Colorado Street and Chelsea Road around 3:26 a.m. After officers arrived, the driver, a Los Angeles resident, admitted he smoke marijuana six hours prior, according to the Arcadia Police Department.
 
The 35-year-old driver was taken into custody and was briefly hospitalized to be medically cleared before being booked.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
​CityWatch Editor

ARCADIA - A 22-year-old man has not been seen in more than a week after walking away from a family member.

Matthew Munoz was last seen at Westfield Santa Anita Mall, 400 S. Baldwin Ave., Tuesday, December 11 in the late afternoon. Munoz suffers from a mental condition that causes him to revert to a “child-like” state, according to the Arcadia Police Department.

Munoz is known to frequent County Park, LA Fitness, and Santa Anita Mall.

Munoz’s condition is short-lived and he reverts back to normal, Arcadia Police said.

Munoz is a non-dependent adult. He carries no cell phone or cash with him.

Munoz is 5 feet 9 inches tall, weighs 160 pounds, has black hair, a mustache and beard and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing a green shirt, grey shorts, long white socks, black Nike shoes, has stretched earlobes and wore a Dodgers hat.

Anyone with information on Munoz’s whereabouts is urged to call Arcadia Police at 626-57-5156.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

ARCADIA - Two men took a wallet from their victim during an armed robbery just after 9 p.m. Monday.

The robbery occurred in the 300 block of North 1st Avenue. One of the suspects produced a silver semi-automatic handgun and took a wallet containing cash, debit cards and a driver license, according to an Arcadia Police crime broadcast.

Both men are Hispanic and in their early 20s, stand 5 feet 8 inches tall, have thin builds and short black hair.

One suspect wore a white shirt and blue jeans.

The second suspect wore a dark shirt, blue jean pants and wore a mask covering the lower half of his face.

The suspects fled in an early-2000s grey four-door Toyota Camry, which was seen southbound on 1st Avenue and east on Santa Clara Street.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

ARCADIA - Two men and a woman received minor injuries and hospitalization in a tussle with frequent adversaries Monday.

The fight occurred with other transients on a bike trail at Peck Road Park, 5401 Peck Rd. December 17. El Monte Police informed Sheriff’s deputies of the fight just before 4 p.m., according to Deputy Trina Schrader of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Information Bureau.

The victims refuse to give information on the others involved in the tussle.

“They’re not giving any information on the suspects. They know them from the area,” Schrader said. “There’s an ongoing dispute among these individuals.”

It was unclear to deputies what, if any, weapons were used in the fight, which was originally dispatched as a possible stabbing.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

ARCADIA - A suspect is still outstanding after attempting to rob his intended victim at gunpoint Monday night.

The attempted robbery occurred in the 100 block of East Huntington Drive at 6:30 p.m. The suspect engaged his intended victim in conversation before producing a handgun, according to Lt. Tom Cullen of the Arcadia Police Department.

"The suspect ... produced a handgun, and demanded property. The suspect did not obtain any property from the victim," Cullen said in a written statement.

The suspect took off on a bicycle east on Huntington Drive.

Officers conducted a search of the area and came across a man they believed was the suspect. This man fled when police tried to contact him, setting off a multi-agency perimeter search.

The fleeing man was eventually caught, but was not the armed robbery suspect, the intended victim told Arcadia officers.

The outstanding suspect is a Hispanic man, approximately 50 years old, is bald, stands 5 feet 6 inches tall, weighs 160 pounds and was wearing a baggy black jacket and black cargo pants. He rode an older gray, 10-speed bicycle, Cullen said.

Anyone with information on the suspect is encouraged to call the Arcadia Police Department at 626-574-5151, reference case number 1805558. Information can be provided anonymously by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).

Written by AARON CASTREJON
​CityWatch Editor

ARCADIA - The FBI is now investigating a gutsy hacking case in which one customer was duped into wiring $52,000 to the suspect, believing an outstanding invoice was being paid.

The incident was reported to officers November 20. The suspect hacked into the email of the owner of KGS Electronics, 418 E. Live Oak Ave.

“An investigation revealed unknown suspect(s) hacked into the owner’s email and instructed customers to pay their outstanding invoices by using a fraudulent wire transfer method,” Arcadia Police said in a written statement.

It is unclear how many other victims there are and how much money they may have lost.

The $52,000 payment went to an unknown account in Mexico.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

ARCADIA - Police continue their investigation of a fatal traffic collision on Duarte Road November 30.

The victim, a 52-year-old Arcadia woman, was crossing the street in the 1100 block of West Duarte Road around 3:27 p.m. when she was struck. Paramedics treated the woman at the scene and took her to a nearby hospital where she died, according to Lt. Mike Castro of the Arcadia Police Department.

The driver of the vehicle was uninjured, Castro said.

Arcadia Police collision investigators had Duarte Road between Sunset Boulevard and Oak Avenue blocked to traffic for nearly three hours. The roadway was opened by 6:15 p.m., Arcadia Police said.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CItyWatch Editor

ARCADIA - Police arrested a man November 9 after two suspicious fires were ignited.
 
One fire was extinguished around 8 a.m. at First Avenue and Colorado Boulevard November 9. Later that night, a second fire was extinguished around 9:30 p.m. in the 400 block of East Santa Clara Street at the bottom of a 210 freeway off ramp, Arcadia Police said.
 
“Arson investigators identified a person of interest during the investigation that possessed a cigarette lighter,” Arcadia Police said.
 
The 28-year-old man was detained and he eventually confessed to starting the two fires, Arcadia Police said.
 
The suspect was taken into custody.