MONROVIA – A resident detained a strange woman after he arrived to find her inside his home.

Police were called to the 500 block of West Olive Avenue around 10:41 a.m. November 14. The resident found the woman rummaging through drawers and cupboards, according to the Monrovia Police Department.

“The resident came home and detained the female who claimed she lived there,” according to the Monrovia Police Department in a written statement.

Officers arrived and found the resident had detained the woman. She was soon arrested.

MONROVIA - Two adults sleeping in a home where uninjured after a suspect in a neighboring home saw fit to open fire into their residence Wednesday morning.

Investigators are still trying to learn what possessed the man to fire his weapon from inside his residence into the neighboring home. The suspect was found about a block away from the scene and was taken into custody without further incident, according to Sgt. Harvey of the Monrovia Police Department.

Police received multiple calls of gunfire in the 1400 block of South Alta Vista Avenue around 3:28 a.m.

“There were shots fired from within one house and into another house, so the rounds went through the door and into another location where people were living,” Harvey told SGV CityWatch.

The victims were asleep when the shots were fired.

The weapon was recovered, Harvey told SGV CityWatch.

William Patrick James O’Brien, a 37-year-old Monrovia man was booked on suspicion of shooting in a grossly negligent manner.

He is being held in lieu of $250,000 bail ahead of a scheduled appearance in Pasadena Municipal Court November 18.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

MONROVIA – A suspect was arrested Monday in connection with a two-alarm commercial fire that forced the evacuation of surrounding businesses.

First responders were dispatched to the 1100 block of South Mountain Avenue around 5:09 p.m. and discovered pallets and boxes burning to the rear of a warehouse, which was also fully engulfed, according to the Monrovia Police Department.

Witnesses alerted police to a suspicious person seen leaving the scene and a description and direction of travel was provided. The suspect was spotted several blocks away in Duarte, according to the Monrovia Police Department.

“When officers attempted contact, the suspect immediately fled into a large business park,” according to the Monrovia Police Department in a written statement.

A perimeter search conducted by Monrovia officers, as well as officers from nearby cities, revealed the hiding suspect. Witnesses identified the suspect.

“He hasn’t officially been charged yet. They’re still working on things,” according to Sgt. Chad Harvey of the Monrovia Police Department.

The suspect, who Harvey declined to identify at this time, would likely be facing charges including arson and obstructing an officer.

The search lasted roughly 20 to 30 minutes before the suspect was found.

MONROVIA - Officers arrived en masse Thursday after receiving a report of a school shooting at Monrovia High School which ultimately ended up being false.

Dispatchers received a single call of an active shooter on the second floor of Monrovia High School, 845 W. Colorado  Blvd., around 11:45 a.m. October 13. Officers arrived within three minutes of the call and the campus was immediately placed on lockdown, according to the Monroeville Police Department.

Nearby Monroe Elementary School was also locked down after being told of a suspicious person walking nearby. That person was verified as a parent of a student at the elementary school, according to the Monrovia Police Department.

Officers initiated a sweep of rooms at Monrovia High School after indicating they were no visible or audible signs of a shooting taking place, according to the Monrovia Police Department.

“The first high school building was cleared within 20 minutes of the call and MPD continued a thorough check of the entire campus, each room, as a precaution. The campus was ultimately cleared within approximately 90 minutes of the call,” according to Monrovia City Manager Dylan Feik in a written statement.

Both Monrovia High School and Monroe Elementary School had lockdowns lifted at 1:35 p.m. A reunification plan for students was used, but campus remained open for students who could not be picked up by any family member, or for students who wished to remain on campus, Feik said.

“Other communities are reporting similar threats reported and the MPD is already working to report this incident to the Federal Bureau of Investigations,” Feik said.

South Pasadena Police added extra patrols to their schools out of an abundance of caution after learning of the false calls.

MONROVIA – A trio of burglars were unable to open a safe, but made off with a handful of cash during a commercial burglary August 23.

Officers were called to the business in the 100 block of West Foothill Boulevard around 3:50 a.m. after an alarm activated. Officers found a shattered glass door, according to the Monrovia Police Department.

“Video surveillance showed three suspects enter the location and attempt to open the safe with a sledge hammer. They exited the building with approximately $30 in change from the register,” according to the Monrovia Police Department in a written statement.

Descriptions of the suspects were not provided.

MONROVIA – A bicyclist reportedly punched and stole his victim’s cell phone in a late night robbery May 23, according to the Monrovia Police Department.

The victim was reportedly knocked out during the robbery in the 900 block of East Huntington Drive. Officers were called to the scene at 9 p.m., according to the Monrovia Police Department.

Employees of a nearby business called to report the crime.

The suspect was not located.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

MONROVIA – A woman gave birth inside a vacant building early Sunday morning, police said.

Monrovia firefighters and Monrovia police officers were called to the building in the 100 block of Pomona Street around 5 a.m. April 3. When officers arrived to the scene, one officer announced that the baby was delivered, according to Monrovia Police radio traffic.

Both the mother, described as being in her 20s, and new baby were transported for treatment to Arcadia Methodist Hospital, according to Cpt. Shawn Morton of the Monrovia Fire Department.

There was at least one other person accompanying the woman in the building and was talking with fire department dispatchers, Morton told SGV CityWatch.

It was not clear to Lt. Kevin Oberon of the Monrovia Police Department if the mother or the caller were living inside the vacant building.

The conditions of the mother and baby were not immediately known.

MONROVIA – Two armed, would-be carjackers decided to flee after the homeowner decided to brandish his own weapon March 26.

The incident unfolded in the 400 block of Genoa around 10:22 p.m. The owner was working in his garage on his vehicle when a suspect approached and began conversing with him. The suspect then brandished a handgun. A second suspect appeared and also had a weapon, according to the Monrovia Police Department.

“One of the suspects asked for the keys to the vehicle and the victim stated he did not have the keys. The two suspects looked at each other and began speaking with each other. The victim went into his residence and retrieved a firearm and pointed it at the suspects,” according to the Monrovia Police Department in a written statement.

The homeowner told the suspects to leave and they did.

Monrovia officers searched for the suspects, but they were not found.

MONROVIA – Three suspects stole a gargantuan amount of cigarettes from a business before the products could even be loaded into the store, police said.

The theft took place around 10:52 a.m. in the 1600 block of South Myrtle Avenue March 24. The victim drove to the business with the cigarettes to replenish his stock. Three suspects then arrived in a vehicle, according to the Monrovia Police Department.

“Within a few seconds a vehicle drives up and three males exit and unload $5,000 worth of cigarettes from the victim's vehicle. This investigation is continuing,” according to the Monrovia Police Department in a written statement.

No suspect description was publicly provided.

MONROVIA – Authorities are investigating a death that occurred in a parking lot early Tuesday.

The person, described as an adult male, was found in the parking lot south of the Monrovia Public Library south of West Lime Avenue around 5:21 a.m. March 1. Initially, the death is described as a suicide, according to Lt. Daniel Verna of the Monrovia Police Department.

Verna said the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner was on scene as of 7:40 a.m. and the area would be opened shortly.