Written by AARON CASTREJON
Citywatch Editor

ARCADIA - Investigators are still piecing together what led to a deadly house fire early Tuesday morning.

Three residents died and two were taken to a hospital with undisclosed injuries. First responders were called to the 5300 block of Tyler Avenue in unincorporated Arcadia just after 1 a.m. January 2.

The fire possibly started in an attached garage.

Firefighters arrived and found smoke and fire showing from both the house and garage. The fire was knocked down by 1:31 a.m., according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

One of the fatalities is described as a man who apparently ascended a staircase to the second floor where two victims were trapped.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

ARCADIA - A man found dead in a flood control channel Thursday morning died accidentally after attempting to crawl over a fence to gain access to an apartment complex, investigators said Friday.

The body was discovered Thursday, August 24. The man apparently was trying to gain access to the apartment complex to retrieve property from his friend’s unit that he visited the previous night, according to Det. Sanchez of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Homicide Bureau.

Firefighters were called to an EMS report at that location around 7:40 a.m. Thursday and left without transporting anybody, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

The man was unable to walk into the property and could not drive in. He attempted to scale a fence around 8:40 p.m. the previous night and then fell in to the flood control channel. Security video from nearby led investigators to this conclusion, Sanchez told SGV CityWatch.

ARCADIA – One person was killed in a crash on the westbound 210 freeway at Baldwin Avenue Wednesday.

The HOV, No. 1 and 2 lanes of traffic remain closed during cleanup and an investigation, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The CHP responded to a report of a possible silver Saturn blacked out and stalled in the HOV lane. Sometime before 4:53 a.m., a collision occurred, according to CHP traffic logs.

At 5:09 a.m. all lanes were temporarily closed. By 5:12 a.m., the No. 4 lane and the right shoulder were opened to traffic.

LOS ANGELES – A Monrovia woman who was shot dead on the 210 freeway in Arcadia September 4 was identified recently.

Bertha Hernandez, 35, was identified by the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner. She died from a gunshot wound to the head.

Hernandez was driving a black Mercedes Benz east on the 210 freeway when the shooting occurred near Baldwin Avenue. CHP officers were called to a collision and found the car had crashed into a sound wall, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Hernandez was declared dead at the scene, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The events leading up to the shooting are either unknown, or have yet to be publicly shared.

Anyone with information on this shooting is urged to call California Highway Patrol Investigator Carlos Martinez at 323-353-8381.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

UPDATE, 7:15 p.m.: The Victims of the double homicide September 5 were both described as a white man and white woman, both in their 50s, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Information Bureau.

There were no apparent signs of forced entry into the location. There is no suspect information, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Information Bureau.

​ARCADIA - Sheriff’s homicide detectives are investigating what led to the shooting deaths of a man and woman Sunday morning.

The deaths were discovered in the 600 block of Huntington Drive just after 11 a.m. September 5.

Investigators have not yet shared if this is possibly a murder-suicide or some other crime.

Anyone with information on this incident is urged to call the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. Information can be provided anonymously by calling LA Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), through the P3Tips mobile app, or lacrimestoppers.org.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

ARCADIA - All eastbound lanes west of Baldwin Avenue on the 210 freeway in Acadia will be closed for at least eight hours after one person was found dead at the scene of a collision that was possibly tied to a freeway shooting, the California Highway Patrol said.

CHP responded to the scene at 9:05 a.m. September 4, according to Officer Peter Nicholson of the California Highway Patrol.

Nicholson has preliminary information on a possible suspect vehicle involved but is waiting from a investigators on scene to develop better information before publicly sharing a description of the vehicle involved.

All eastbound traffic is being diverted off at Michillinda Avenue.

Nicholson was unaware of other injuries involved in the crash. Whether the victim died from the crash or from possibly being shot is not immediately known.

 ARCADIA – A driver was killed, his passenger injured after a two-vehicle collision was caused by another driver suspect of being under the influence August 6.
 
The crash occurred around 10:50 p.m. at Las Tunas Drive and Baldwin Avenue. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene. The passenger was taken to Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena with serious injuries, according to the Arcadia Police Department.

The victim was only described as a man in his 60s. The coroner is awaiting notification of next of kin, according to Sarah Ardalani, public information officer with the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner.
 
A suspected drunk driver was eastbound on Las Tunas Drive when the driver lost control while traveling at high speed, crossed the raised median and slammed into the other vehicle head-on, according to the Arcadia Police Department.
 
The suspected DUI driver appeared uninjured. The driver was also taken to Huntington Memorial for evaluation, according to the Arcadia Police Department.

It is not yet publicly known if the suspect DUI driver has been arrested.

ARCADIA – Investigators are trying to determine why a vehicle left the roadway and slammed into two power poles and a flood control fence, a crash that killed the driver.
 
The solo collision occurred in the area of Las Tunas Drive and El Monte Avenue at 11:37 p.m. February 21. When officers arrived, the driver was dead. Two passengers suffered minor injuries, according to Lt. Jeremy Lachenmyer of the Arcadia Police Department.
 
Anyone with information on this collision is urged to call Arcadia Police at 626-574-5151 and reference case number 21-0623. Information can be provided anonymously by calling LA Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS(8477), through the P3Tips mobile app, or lacrimestoppers.org.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

ARCADIA - An 84-year-old man was found dead after firefighters extinguished flames inside an Arcadia home Wednesday.

Firefighters did however rescue three family members from the burning home in the 1900 block of South Santa Anita Avenue. Firefighters were dispatched around 6:06 p.m., according to the Arcadia Fire Department.

Upon arriving, firefighters reported heavy smoke and flames from the rear of the home and reports of trapped occupants, the Arcadia Fire Department said.

The victim has not been publicly identified.

The cause is under investigation.