BALDWIN PARK – Alcohol likely contributed to a rollover crash on a rain-soaked Mt. Baldy Road above Claremont Monday night that took the life of his passenger, the California Highway Patrol said.

Oscar Daniel Pineda, 30, is accused of driving south on the mountain road north of Shinn Road at high speed, causing the 2018 Toyota Camry to crash into a dirt berm and overturn onto the asphalt, according to the CHP.

The collision occurred January 17 at 11:35 p.m.

Pineda’s right rear passenger, a 28-year-old Ontario woman, died at the scene. She has been identified as Janet Hernandez, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner.

Pineda and his other passenger, Brian Martin Valdivia from Los Angeles, were taken to Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center.

Neither Hernandez, nor Valdivia were wearing seatbelts, according to the CHP.

Pineda was booked on suspicion of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and DUI causing bodily injury, according to the CHP.

Pineda is being held in lieu of $100,000 ahead of a scheduled appearance in Pomona Municipal Court January 20.

CLAREMONT – A multi-vehicle collision left a motorcyclist dead on the eastbound 210 freeway at Baseline Road November 9.

The collision was reported just before 6 p.m. near the Baseline Road off ramp. A blue BMW X5 reportedly hit the motorcycle. The rider was discovered down without a pulse in the No. 1 lane, according to the California Highway Patrol.

A Toyota Corolla was possibly also involved.

At 6:17 p.m., a 2-hour Sig Alert was issued for the HOV and No., 1, 2 and 3 lanes. By 9:13 p.m., the CHP announced all lanes were reopened.

It is unclear if alcohol, or drugs played a factor in the crash. It is also unclear if an arrest was ever made.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

CLAREMONT - A large safe and other personal property was recovered from the vehicle occupied by four burglary suspects who decided to flee from Claremont Police and the California Highway Patrol until they crashed and rolled their SUV in Downey Sunday night.

The suspects are accused of committing two residential burglaries May 16. Officers responded just after 8 p.m. to the 800 block of Brigham Young Drive after a resident saw three suspects armed with baseball bats enter the rear yard of a residence. Police did not find the suspects, but recovered a baseball bat. Minutes later, police responded to another address a short distance away, the Claremont Police Department said.

A residential burglary alarm was triggered just before 8:30 p.m. in the 4100 block of New Hampshire Ave. Responding officers saw a white SUV leaving the neighborhood. A Claremont officer in an unmarked police vehicle began following that white SUV. Backup officers confirmed a burglary happened at the New Hampshire home, Claremont Police Department said.

The white SUV was trailed onto the westbound 210 freeway and then to the southbound 605 freeway with additional Claremont officers and a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department helicopter also following.

The California Highway Patrol was requested to take over the chase and after attempting to conduct a traffic stop, the suspects fled at high speed.

The pursuit entered the city of Downey where the suspects attempted to exit onto Bellflower Boulevard where they crashed on the offramp and rolled in their SUV. The driver ran away, leaving his three accomplices behind in the SUV to eventually be arrested.

The driver fled through residential properties and reportedly ran into a garage where he hid briefly before officers located him with the help of a helicopter and took him into custody, according to California Highway Patrol radio traffic.

Lancaster man Dequan Clark, 20, Los Angeles man Jaheim Hickman, 19, Los Angeles man Bernard Peoples, 23, and a 15-year-old juvenile from Hawthorne were taken into custody.

Inside the SUV, officers located property reportedly taken from the home on New Hampshire Avenue, Including a large safe. Additional property was also found believed to have been stolen from a home in Chino Hills, Claremont Police said.

The three adult suspects were booked on suspicion of attempted burglary, burglary and possession of stolen property.

Two of the adult suspects are being held without bail at the Claremont Police Department Jail for probation and parole violations, while the third adult suspect is being held at the Claremont Police Department Jail in lieu of $50,000 bail, Claremont Police said.

The juvenile suspect was later released on a citation to his parent. All three adult suspects are scheduled to appear at Pomona Superior Court on Tuesday, May 18, Claremont Police said.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
​CityWatch Editor

CLAREMONT - Three students were injured after the bus they were in collided with another vehicle, the California Highway Patrol reported.

CLAREMONT - A male driver died at the scene of a solo crash after the 2015 Hyundai Azera he was driving veered into an embankment Monday morning.

The Azera was west on the 210 freeway west of Baseline Road at an unknown high rate of speed when, for unknown reasons, the car veered to the right, went through a dirt embankment and landed on its roof on the concrete right shoulder, the California Highway Patrol said.

CLAREMONT - A driver was fired upon Saturday by a reported tailgater who became angry at the driver for moving too slow, the CHP said.

The shooting occurred on the eastbound 210 freeway west of Baseline Road around 10:42 p.m. March 23. The driver was uninjured, according to Officer Moises Marroquin of the California Highway Patrol.

CLAREMONT - One person died at the scene of a collision between 10 to 15 vehicles on the westbound I-10 freeway at the Indian Hill Boulevard onramp Sunday morning.

Nine other people were injured, two critically, when the vehicles collided just before 2 a.m. March 24.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

CLAREMONT - Police arrested three suspects, including one juvenile, after they led officers on a high-speed chase into Los Angeles Monday morning.

The three suspects were witnessed by a passerby as they reportedly burglarized a Jamba Juice and the neighboring Poke Dot, 175 N. Indian Hill Ave., just after midnight October 29. The driver fled the suspect vehicle as officers arrived. One of the three passengers took the wheel and led police on a pursuit, according to the Claremont Police Department.

The suspect who fled on foot is still outstanding.

The pursuit sped along the west I-10 freeway and north on the 605. The pursuit transitioned to the west 210 freeway and to the west 134.

The suspects entered surfaces streets from the south 2 freeway where the three suspects in the vehicle fled on foot in the area of West Avenue 40 and Delevan Street in Los Angeles, according to Claremont Police radio traffic.

The California Highway Patrol,  Glendale Police officers and a helicopter assisted Claremont in tracking down the suspects.

Evidence found in the suspect vehicle linked all three suspects to the burglary, Claremont Police said.

A sledgehammer was apparently used to gain access to at least one of the businesses, according to Claremont Police radio traffic.

Arrested were Lancaster man Jailyn Cottrell, 18, Palmdale man Davine Bruce, 18, and a 15-year-old boy.

Cottrell was booked on suspicion of felony evading officers, burglary, possession of burglary tools, resisting arrest and conspiracy to commit a crime. He is being held in lieu of $75,000 bail.

Bruce was booked on suspicion of burglary, possession of burglary tools, resisting arrest and conspiracy to commit a crime. His bail set at $20,000.

The boy, a Long Beach resident, was booked on suspicion of burglary, possession of burglary tools, resisting arrest and conspiracy to commit a crime. He is being held at Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall in Downey.