Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

BASSETT - A bullet fragment was recovered from the drywall of a bedroom wall Thursday night, the result of a neighborhood shooting.

A caller told deputies that a loud bang was heard around 10 p.m. in the 800 block of Feather Avenue June 12. When the house was checked, the gunshot damage was found, according to Sgt. Smith of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

“He checked the house, found a single gunshot hole in a front-facing, unoccupied bedroom. The projectile went through the bedroom and into the drywall,” Smith told SGV CityWatch.

The resident claims no gang affiliation and doesn’t understand why the home was targeted, Smith told SGV CityWatch.

A van was described as the possible suspect vehicle.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

BASSETT - A 17-year-old male is in stable condition Tuesday after being wounded in a drive-by shooting.

Deputies learned of the shooting May 6 after the teen was taken to a hospital. The shooting took place near Amar Road and Puente Avenue as the victim was walking in the area, according to Sgt. Del Valle of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Industry Station.

A four-door sedan with two occupants fled the scene southbound on Puente Avenue after the shooting.

The motive for the shooting is not immediately known.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

BASSETT - One victim was shot by a suspect who fled in a vehicle Wednesday.

The shooting occurred near Amar Road and Puente Avenue around 7:30 p.m. September 25. The suspect, reportedly the passenger in a vehicle, yelled out a gang moniker before the vehicle sped away, according to Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department radio traffic.

The vehicle, a dark-colored four-door sedan, was driven north on Puente Avenue and out of view.

The gunman was described as a Latino man, 18 years old, 5 feet 7 inches tall and 160 pounds. He wore a gray hooded sweatshirt, a black hat with the letter “B” on it, according to Sheriff’s radio traffic.

The condition of the shooting victim is not publicly known.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

BASSETT - A man’s death led to a homicide investigation Tuesday night.

First responders were sent to the 13500 block of Temple Avenue in unincorporated Bassett around 9:53 p.m. A male adult suffered unspecified injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

Sheriff’s Homicide detectives have yet to publicly share the apparent cause of death.

Anyone with information on this incident is urged to call the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. Remain anonymous 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

BASSETT - A man was taken to a trauma center after being shot at least once early Saturday morning.

The victim was apparently uncooperative with investigators who got very little information out of him, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Industry Station.

First responders were sent to Don Julian Road and Santa Mariana Avenue around 1:30 a.m. September 16. The victim was treated at the scene and then taken to Los Angeles General Medical Center.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

BASSETT - Two men, one armed with an unknown-caliber handgun, escaped with their victim’s EBT card and debit card Sunday.

The robbery occurred near the 605 freeway and Valley Boulevard around 3 p.m. Sunday, April 3. After taking the property, both suspects left on foot in an unknown direction, according to a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department crime broadcast.

One suspect is a Latino man in his 30s who stands 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighs 200 pounds. He wore a white shirt and dark pants.

The second suspect is a Latino man in his 30s and also stands 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighs 160 pounds. He has brown hair and wore a tan shirt and tan pants.

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office formally charged two people August 23 in a scheme to bilk more than $1 million from a voter-approved bond measure for the Bassett Unified School District.

Former Bassett Unified School District Superintendent Alejandro Rojas and Del Terra CEO Luis Rojas were charged at the Foltz Criminal Justice Center with 12 counts of money laundering and one count each of soliciting a bribe and grand theft by embezzlement. Alejandro Rojas was additionally charged with three counts of perjury and one count of conflict of interest, according to the DA’s Office.

“Between April 2015 and September 2016, Alex Rojas allegedly approved more than $1 million in Del Terra invoices for work that was never done,” according to the DA’s Office in a written statement.

The $30 million bond measure was earmarked for construction and program management services at the district.

Alex Rojas served as the district superintendent between April 2014 and May 2017. Luis Rojas was CEO of Del Terra, which had been hired to oversee school district construction projects, according to the DA’s Office.
 
“Illegally diverting voter-approved bond money from schools not only deprives our children of already scarce resources but also diminishes the public’s trust in and support for our educational institutions,” according to Los Angeles County District Attorney Gascón in a written statement. “Rooting out public corruption is a priority for my office and will help us to maintain our community’s faith in a government that fairly and honestly serves all of its constituents.”

Arraignment is scheduled for October 26.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

BASSETT - A assault with a deadly weapon suspect was “persuaded” to surrender after barricading himself inside a motel room Memorial Day.

Deputies with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Industry Station responded to the motel in the 13700 block of Valley Boulevard. The suspect was sought by the Sheriff’s East Los Angeles Station.

Surrounding home were evacuated.

The Sheriff’s Special Enforcement Bureau took over the scene and the Sheriff’s Crisis Negotiation Team worked to get the suspect to surrender, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

At 1:51 p.m., the Sheriff’s Department reported “after many verbal attempts by LASD Crisis Negotiations Team members, the suspect was persuaded to surrender. SEB deputies successfully took the suspects into custody without further incident.”

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

BASSETT - One driver was struck in the leg by gunfire from a reportedly unknown suspect Friday.

The driver wound up in the 700 block of Big Dalton Avenue. Deputies were called to the scene around 7:06 p.m. January 14. He reportedly heard as many as three gunshots, according to Lt. Kearney of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Industry Station.

“He was in his vehicle driving southbound on Puente approaching Amar, heard two to three gunshots and realized he had been shot in his upper left thigh,” Kearney told SGV CityWatch.

The driver ended up at his family’s home on Big Dalton and the family called deputies, Kearney told SGV CityWatch.

No bullet casings were located at Amar and Puente. Gang graffiti, however, was seen and documented, according to deputies at the scene.

The driver, who is reportedly from a local gang, has since been hospitalized.

No suspect or vehicle description was obtained.

Detectives with the Sheriff’s Operation Safe Streets bureau have been called and will take over the investigation.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

BASSETT - A stolen vehicle suspect was caught November 12 after fleeing to Pacoima.

Deputies discovered the vehicle was stolen at Baldwin Park Boulevard and Amar Road around 12:45 a.m. The suspect fled to the freeways, but the California Highway Patrol took over the pursuit, according to Sgt. Geary of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Industry Station.

Once the CHP took over, Industry deputies left the pursuit.

Geary was not sure of the make and model of the vehicle, nor when and where it was stolen.

The CHP could not be reached for suspect booking information.