 Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor EL MONTE - Officers uncovered a treasure trove of tools common in catalytic converter thefts after four suspects attempted to escape police Wednesday. The driver took off after officers attempted to stop him for a vehicle code violation at Garvey and Durfee avenues around 1:18 a.m. August 5. The pursuit lasted roughly five miles before the suspect crashed in Pico Rivera near Peck Road and Rooks Road, according to Lt. Snook of the El Monte Police Department. All four suspects were found relatively quickly, with one reportedly attempting to hide from a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s helicopter by seeking refuge under a bush near a pipeline, Snook told SGV CityWatch. Not only did the vehicle display false license plates, officers reportedly found inside a floor jack, reciprocating saw, saw blades, gloves and ski masks, according to the El Monte Police Department. The adults arrested were:
The charges include felony evading, conspiracy, possession of burglary tools and resisting arrest, according to the El Monte Police Department. ********** The arrest record in this article is being redistributed by SGV CityWatch and is protected by constitutional, publishing and other legal rights. Arrest information is public record and was distributed by government sources. The person named in this article has only been arrested on suspicion of the crime(s) listed and is presumed innocent. ********** Copyright 2026. All stories and original images published here are the exclusive property of SGV CityWatch and may not be republished in any form without the permission of this organization.  Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor EL MONTE – Police arrested five people involved in an alleged assault Sunday night that led to a pursuit into Los Angeles and back again.
The five suspects were involved to varying degrees in an assault in the 10500 block of Valley Boulevard around 8 p.m. November 14. The victims, a father and son, were allegedly assaulted after leaving a restaurant, according to lt. Pete Rasic of the El Monte Police Department. Police quickly saw the suspect vehicle near the scene after the victims described the vehicle. The driver and suspects sped away after officers attempted a traffic stop, Rasic told SGV CityWatch. The fled officers at high speeds, sometimes at 100 miles per hour. During the pursuit a handgun was tossed from the suspect vehicle, but was later recovered, Rasic told SGV CityWatch. The pursuit ended with three suspects being quickly detained on Santa Anita Avenue near Valley Boulevard in El Monte. Two suspects continued to flee on foot, with one fleeing into the rather large Rio Hondo flood control channel, but both fleeing suspects were caught, Rasic told SGV CityWatch. In an odd twist, a vehicle seemingly unrelated to the pursuit caught fire on Santa Anita Avenue south of Valley Boulevard just after the pursuit ended. The driver of the burning vehicle told officers that while in Los Angeles he was a victim of a crime involving the assault suspects. Officers are investigating this new allegation, Rasic told SGV CityWatch. Booking information was not yet available.  Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor SAN GABRIEL – The pursuit of a stolen Hyundai was ended with the driver at-large after an El Monte police cruiser crashed during the chase Friday.
The police cruiser occupied with two officers crashed while exiting onto Del Mar Avenue from the west I-10 freeway May 7. The officers suffered minor injuries, according to Lt. Richard Luna of the El Monte Police Department. The officers attempted to stop the driver of a silver Hyundai, possibly a Sonata, for allegedly running a red light at Ramona Boulevard and Peck Road around 4:52 a.m. The driver refused to stop, Luna told SGV CityWatch. The silver Hyundai was reported stolen, Luna told SGV CityWatch. The California Highway Patrol is investigating the crash.  Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor EL MONTE - A driver who led officers on a chase into the City of Industry Saturday was jailed after crashing near some railroad tracks. A patrol officer attempted to stop the driver around 11 p.m. August 29 at Peck Road and Garvey Avenue, but the driver refused to yield, according to Lt. Doug Knight of the El Monte Police Department. The driver reportedly was wanted for reckless driving, according to Lieutenant Pete Rasic of El Monte Police.
The pursuit lasted roughly 15 to 20 minutes before It ended in the city of industry at Valley Boulevard and Fairway Avenue near the Union Pacific railroad tracks. The driver was booked on suspicion of evading a peace officer, reckless driving and assault with a deadly weapon, Knight told SGV CityWatch. The suspects name was not readily available.  Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor EL MONTE – A driver was arrested by the California Highway Patrol Wednesday after allegedly refusing to stop for El Monte officers for talking on the phone while driving. An El Monte officer witnessed the female driver talking on a cell phone while waiting at a red light at Santa Anita Avenue and Valley Boulevard April 29 around 11:12 p.m. The driver refused to pull over for the officer and the chase was on, according to Lt. Ernie Cramer of the El Monte Police Department. The pursuit entered the freeways where officers pursued the driver through Whittier and into Orange County. The CHP was given the pursuit in the Buena Park area, Cramer said. The pursuit wound its way through Brea, La Habra and even Fullerton, according to CHP radio traffic.
The CHP was given the pursuit in the Buena Park area, Cramer said. The driver stopped on West Artesia Boulevard at South Wilmington Avenue in Compton and refused to exit until less lethal rounds helped the CHP take the suspect into custody. The CHP could not be reached Thursday morning for arrest information on the suspect.  Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor MORENO VALLEY - The California Highway Patrol arrested a stolen vehicle suspect as she fled with a passenger into Riverside County early Monday. El Monte Police began pursuing the driver after she failed to stop for an officer before 1:30 a.m. December 2. The chase took the eastbound I-10 freeway into Claremont where the CHP took over, according to Lt. Pete Rasic of the El Monte Police Department. CHP officers from the San Gorgonio Pass Office took over the chase near Cherry Valley Boulevard and the I-10 freeway in the community of Cherry Valley, according to Officer Matt Napier of the CHP San Gorgonio Pass Office.
The driver, 26-year-old Carolina Hernandez, an El Monte resident, was arrested and booked on suspicion of felony evading, possession of a stolen vehicle and possession of stolen property, Napier said. Hernandez’s passenger was detained and released.  Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor EL MONTE - A carjacking suspect was jailed after fleeing El Monte police at high speed, in opposing lanes of traffic, ramming a patrol car and causing an officer to crash, a police lieutenant said Friday. The officer crashed into a pole while following the carjacking suspect who used the on ramp to exit the eastbound I-10 freeway after traveling the wrong way, said Lt. Ernie Cramer of the El Monte Police Department. The carjacking of a Lexus SUV was reported to El Monte Police at 4:28 p.m. June 7. An officer located the SUV within minutes at the west I-10 freeway at Santa Anita Avenue and initiated a pursuit after the suspect refused to stop, Cramer said. The SUV was taken in the 10700 block of Garvey Avenue as the driver was forced from her vehicle as she was loading/unloading the SUV, Cramer said. The pursuit entered surface streets in Alhambra after the suspect took the Atlantic off ramp and fled in excess of 80 miles per hour.
The driver took Valley Boulevard in opposing lanes to Del Mar Avenue in San Gabriel and hit an innocent driver head-on as he fled south from Valley, Cramer said. As the lead El Monte Officer in the chase caught up the suspect at the crash, the suspect backed up and struck the officer’s patrol car and continued south to the westbound I-10 where the driver used the shoulder to flee eastbound, Cramer said. The driver exited on the San Gabriel Avenue on ramp where Cramer believed the officer’s brakes gave out, causing him to crash into a pole on the shoulder. The officer was hospitalized for his injuries. A helicopter located the suspect in the 8000 block of Garvey Avenue where officers took him into custody, Cramer said. Pico Rivera man Mario Antonio Placentia, 42, was booked on suspicion of assault on a peace officer, failure to yield, attempted murder on a peace officer, hit and run causing injury and carjacking, Cramer said. Email Newsletter! | Advertise! | Donate!  Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor EL MONTE - A stolen vehicle was recovered and a grand theft auto suspect was arrested after briefly fleeing El Monte Police Friday. The driver, Samantha Maria Lopez, 20, sped away from officers who tried to initiate a traffic stop at 5:50 p.m. January 4 on Bodger Street near Merced Avenue, according to Lt. Christopher Cano of the El Monte Police Department. The pursuit came to a stop in the area of Bodger Street and Gage Avenue. Lopez fled the car on foot. After a brief search, she was located and arrested, Cano said. The vehicle was reported stolen from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Temple Station jurisdiction, Cano said. Lopez was booked on suspicion of grand theft auto and misdemeanor evading a police officer, Cano said.  Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor EL MONTE - A driver and passenger were arrested, one eluded capture Wednesday night after a pursuit ended in Temple City.
After a 45-minute search December 26, a containment was ended near Willmonte Avenue and Lower Azusa Road around 10:30 p.m. December 26.The suspects were wanted in connection with a grand theft, according to Sgt. David Smith of the El Monte Police Department. An officer saw the suspects parked in the north end of El Monte and attempted to contact them. The driver led officers on a slow-speed pursuit into Temple City for several minutes until the driver stopped. One passenger fled on foot while the driver and second passenger were arrested. Smith was not sure if any stolen property was found in the suspect vehicle. Booking information was not yet available.  Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor EL MONTE - A motorcyclist was arrested Wednesday night after ditching his ride and hiding in an El Monte neighborhood. Officers initially tried to stop the rider, Dillon Parks, 23, for a vehicle code violation around 10:23 p.m. November 14 at Peck Road and Ranchito Street. Parks accelerated his motorcycle and fled officers, said Lt. Michael Buckhannon of the El Monte Police Department. Parks evaded officers, sometimes at 70 miles per hour in the two-minute pursuit through residential streets, Buckhannon said. The pursuit terminated in the 11000 block of McGirk Avenue, Buckhannon said.
Residents on McGirk told SGV CityWatch Parks at one point used sidewalks to try and evade officers, but he was pinned in by police squad cars. Forced to ditch his ride, Parks allegedly fled through yards, but he was caught after a brief search. Parks was booked on suspicion of felony evading police and operating the motorcycle on a suspended license. He is being held in lieu of more than $76,000 bail. |
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