Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

REGION - A man accused of stabbing to death his victim more than 40 times 43 years ago was charged Thursday.

Anthony Davis, 61, was charged with one count of murder in the death of a man at the Spic and Span Motel on or about January 7, 1978. The victim, 42-year-old Rudolfo Chavez was found by a motel employee, according to Greg Risling, assistant media chief with the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.

DNA evidence collected at the crime scene led back to Davis, Risling said in a written statement.

Davis is ex pected to be arraigned in department and other Pomona superior court today, February 19.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office failed to state the possible sentence Davis could face in this crime if he is convicted.

This case is being investigated by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

LOS ANGELES - A man prosecutors accused of funneling hundreds of thousands in Covid-19 jobless benefits to foreign nationals pleaded guilty Thursday.

Bonifacio Jastilana Marinas, 50, pleaded guilty to a single-count criminal information charging him with mail fraud, according to the US Attorney’s Office.

In his plea deal, Marinas admitted that his actions Cost the Unemployment Development Department and the United States Treasury $516,244.

Marinas filed paperwork in the names of foreign nationals he falsely claimed were real estate agents hit hard by the pandemic.

“According to his plea agreement, from April 2020 to August 2020, Marinas took advantage of provisions in the CARES Act to file approximately 85 unemployment insurance claims with the California Employment Development Department (EDD) that falsely asserted that the named claimants were self-employed real estate agents in Los Angeles County whose jobs had been adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic,” the US Attorney’s Office said in a written statement.

Marinas listed his realty business, West Covina-based Vintage Realty & Finance, Inc., as the workplace of the alleged EDD claimants and his home as the claimants’ addresses, but the funds were funneled to residents of Saipan and the Philippines, the US Attorney’s Office said.

The claimants were not registered as real estate agents in Los Angeles County, had no employment history in California and were not eligible for the benefits Marinas claimed, the US District Attorney’s Office said.

As a result, the debit cards used to distribute the unemployment benefits were mailed to Marinas, who then used them to withdraw the fraudulently obtained funds, the US Attorney’s Office said.

Marinas is scheduled for a sentencing June 24 in U.S. District Court and faces a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

LOS ANGELES - Authorities hope a combined $35,000 reward will encourage people to provide information leading to the arrest and conviction of a man who critically shot a Metro L Line train operator January 29.

The train operator was shot at least two times at the Indiana L Line Station in East Los Angeles around 4:11 a.m. The suspect walked up to the front of the train as it stopped and fired twice. The suspect ran after the operator fleeing through the train and opened fire again, injuring the operator, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Information Bureau.

The motive in the shooting is either unknown, or has yet to be publicly shared.

The suspect fled on foot northbound off the platform and west on Gleason Avenue, the Sheriff’s Information Bureau said.

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority authorized a $25,000 reward. Hilda Solis, Los Angeles County Board Supervisor and Metro 1st Vice Chair, has contributed $10,000 to the reward.

Anyone with information on the shooting is urged to call the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Transit Services Detective Bureau at 323-563-5041 to speak with Detective Allen.

Information can be provided anonymously by calling LA Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), through the P3Tips mobile app, or at lacrimestoppers.org.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

VERNON - Investigators helped recover a stolen military Humvee that was taken from a National Guard Armory in Bell.

A community tip overnight, in addition to information developed by the FBI, helped lead to the abandoned $120,000 Humvee found under a freeway overpass near South Downey Road and Bandini Boulevard in Vernon January 20, according to Laura Eimiller, spokeswoman for the FBI Los Angeles Field Office.

“The vehicle was processed for evidence by our Evidence Response Team and returned to the custody of the military,” Eimiller told SGV CityWatch.

The FBI, Los Angeles Police Major Crimea Task Force and military police arrived to the scene around 6 a.m., according to Vernon Police radio traffic.

The Humvee was reported stolen January 15 from the armory around 8:15 a.m.

The vehicle was upgraded to combat-ready and had received upgrades, the FBI said.

A $10,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the arrest of the person, or group responsible for the theft.

Anyone who can help identify the suspect is urged to call 310-477-6565.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

LOS ANGELES - A military Humvee considered upgraded to combat-ready was reported stolen Friday, the FBI said.

The $120,000 vehicle was stolen around 8:15 a.m. from the National Guard Armory in Bell January 15. A $10,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the Humvee’s recovery, according to the FBI.

“The vehicle has four doors and is green camouflage in color. The bumper number is #40BSBHQ6; the Administrative # is WV57TO-HQ06/M1165A1; and the registration number is NZ311R. The Battalion number, 40TH BSB, can also be seen on the vehicle,” according to the FBI in a written statement.

A theft from a military facility - government property - violates federal law and carries a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison, according to the FBI.

Anyone with information leading to the Humvee’s recovery is urged to call the FBI Los Angeles Field Office at 323-477-6565.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

LOS ANGELES - Investigators believe the man who robbed a Glendora Chase Bank January 8 is the same man who robbed a bank in Victorville November 24.

Investigators have dubbed the suspect as the “Cartel Bandit.” In one or both bank robberies, the suspect passed a note to a bank teller. In the note, the suspect demanded cash and detailed how the Mexican cartel would exact revenge if police are called.

The Glendora robbery occurred at the Chase Bank, 1905 E. Route 66. Police responded to the bank at 4:30 p.m., according to Lt. Marty Barrett of the Glendora Police Department.

In the Glendora robbery a gun was threatened, according to Laura Eimiller from FBI Media Relations. She noted that no weapon was actually seen.

It was not specified if the suspect fled with any money. The suspect is still at-large.

Anyone with information on the robbery suspect is urged to call the FBI at 310-477-6565.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

MOUNTAINS – No structures are threatened by a brush fire burning along Mt. Baldy Road Thursday.

The fire is burning heavy brush near Shinn Road. The fire has burned at least two to three acres and is moving south southwest with a moderate rate of spread, according to the U.S. Forest Service.

The fire began burning around 9:45 a.m.

The Los Angeles County Fire Department and U.S. Forest Service are on scene with full brush assignments underway, including aircraft.

The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department is evacuating people around Mt. baldy, the U.S. Forest Service said.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

MOUNTAINS - Three people were injured and one needed to be pulled from a car that crashed down an embankment and overturned in the mountains above Azusa Saturday.

The occupant was estimated to have been trapped in the overturned car for as long as an hour before first responders arrived to San Gabriel Canyon Road at mile marker 20.22 around 9:19 a.m. Two other occupants were able to self-extricate, according to Los Angeles County Fire Department radio traffic.

First responders found the car at least 100 feet over the side on flat terrain.

A battalion chief at the scene initially requested a Hospital Emergency Response Team from County/USC Medical Center to be flown in, but the trapped occupant was freed and the HERT Team was no longer needed.

The two occupants who self-extricated received minor injuries, according to firefighter radio traffic.

By 10:31 a.m., the occupant was airlifted from the scene and was taken to Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center for treatment. The extent of injuries was not immediately known.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

REGION - Two 500 kilovolt transmission lines in the Walnut area malfunctioned, causing 159,239 customers to lose power in the San Gabriel Valley early Sunday, a Southern California Edison spokesman said.

Some customers in Walnut, Covina, West Covina, La Puente, Hacienda Heights, Rowland Heights, El Monte, the Whittier Narows area, Irwindale and Baldwin Park were affected by the outage that began at 6:47 a.m., according to Reggie Kumar, Southern California Edison spokesman.

Customers in Carson were affected as well.

Power was fully restored with the help of generators at 7:36 a.m., Kumar told SGV CityWatch.

“Those transmission lines actually feed all the way to Bakersfield, so it was a very large loss,” Kumar told SGV CityWatch.

The transmission lines are located in the City of Walnut.

The cause is under investigation and repair work continues, Kumar told SGV CityWatch.

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

LOS ANGELES - More than 100 pounds of methamphetamine, 15 pounds of heroin and eight unregistered firearms were seized during a search warrant operation at two El Monte locations December 1.

Two men were taken into custody during the operation and both were booked on suspicion of being felons in possession of loaded firearms and possessing narcotics for the purposes of sales, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

The suspects are described as current gang members and ex-felons, according to Lt. David Auner of the Operation Safe Streets Bureau.

Three of the eight weapons seized are described as assault rifles, Auner said in a December 3 news conference.

Initially, the OSS investigation dealt with weapons offenses, but good timing allowed for the discovery of the narcotics. OSS detectives are in contact with the weapons manufacturers to trace where they were distributed to, Auner said.

OSS credits the work of Sheriff’s gang detectives and community members for making the arrests and seizure of contraband possible. More arrests are anticipated.

“It was information provided by community members who have contact with our detectives. Many of those community members are crime victim families ... through those contacts, developed information about trying to reduce violent crime activity,” Auner said.

Weapons include a 12-gauge shotgun, two M4 assault rifles, AK47, MAC-12, a .45-caliber 1911 semi-automatic pistol, a 9mm semi-automatic pistol and a 9mm assault pistol, Auner said.

Auner declined to provide the names of both suspects, citing the ongoing investigation.

The Operation Safe Streets Bureau works to investigate crimes committed by gangs in Los Angeles County, assists in gang suppression operations and works to discourage youth from engaging in gang activity.

In 2020, OSS teams have arrested 461 suspects in violent crimes, have seized 305 firearms and have conducted 471 search warrant operations.