Police Blotter 8-28-15
Thursday, August 20
A traffic infraction led to the arrest of an Upland man for possession of drug paraphernalia. Claremont police stopped a maroon vehicle near Indian Hill Boulevard and Holt Avenue after the driver failed to stop at a red light. Officers contacted the driver, Sean Maiuri, who consented to a canine search of the vehicle. K-9 Officer Dodger was deployed and discovered one glass pipe under the seat and another in the vehicle’s trunk. The 40-year-old man was arrested for possession of paraphernalia, booked at Claremont jail and later released on $250 bail.
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A Palm Springs gal traveling by bus knocked back a few on the ride and was arrested when police observed that she had difficulty standing. According to Claremont Lieutenant Mike Ciszek, officers responded to the Greyhound bus depot at approximately 8 p.m. after receiving a call of an intoxicated woman who refused to exit the bus. Upon their arrival, police discovered Dolores Kusnic-Deblasi had exited the bus, but had fallen down and into a planter located in front of the business. Two bags containing one 750 ML of Bacardi rum with one-quarter remaining, a 2-liter bottle of Coke and one unopened bottle of red wine was located and identified as belonging to the 66-year-old woman. Based on Ms. Kusnic-Deblasi’s level of intoxication, officers determined she was unable to care for herself and was taken to Claremont jail where she was held until she sobered up.
Friday, August 21
An elderly resident has become the victim of financial abuse. Officers were called to the 200 block of Harrison Avenue after the victim’s conservator noticed that someone had charged over $11,000 on the Claremonter’s Capital One credit card between July 17 and August 21. The 83-year-old victim suffers from dementia and Alzheimer’s. The investigation remains ongoing.
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There’s at least one guy in Claremont who is thankful to have been between a rock and a hard place. Officers responded to Chase Bank located at 865 S. Indian Hill Blvd. around 10 a.m. after Sallam Said went into the bank and requested that a bank employee assist him in paying his bills. The 28-year-old Claremont resident allegedly became agitated when the banker refused. He walked outside and threw a softball-sized rock through the window at the victim, breaking the outer pane of a dual-pane window, but did not injure the employee. Mr. Said was arrested for assault with great bodily injury and held on $30,000 bail.
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Thieves channeled their inner MacGyver and used items lying around the yard to gain access to the second story of two north Claremont residences. According to Lt. Ciszek, unknown thieves used a trashcan to climb onto the second- story patio of a home located on the 800 block of Alameda Drive at approximately 8:20 p.m. The burglars broke the sliding glass door and ransacked the home’s interior before fleeing the scene with an undetermined amount of property. A second home located on the 700 block of Brigham Young Drive was also burglarized. Thieves used a seven-foot ladder left in a courtyard to access to the second floor and broke a door to gain entry to the home before stealing a large, empty safe from a downstairs closet. The investigation remains ongoing.
Saturday, August 22
An injury accident along Mt. Baldy Road sent a motorcyclist and his passenger to the hospital. An 18-year-old female driver from Claremont had pulled out of a dirt turnout on Mt. Baldy Road and right into the path of an oncoming motorcycle that t-boned the vehicle. The 27-year-old male rider and his 30-year-old female passenger, both from San Dimas and wearing helmets, were ejected from the bike. The rider fractured both of his legs and was airlifted to USC with numerous cuts to his legs and body. The passenger was also transported with a broken left ankle and cuts to her feet and arms. The driver of the vehicle was unharmed.
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Officers responded to Stix Ride Shop after receiving a call of a theft in progress. Upon their arrival, officers discovered the suspect, Michael Sanchez, seated on the floor inside the store. The 22-year-old told police he wanted a “Destroy the Future” T-shirt, but didn’t have the $24.95 to purchase it. Instead, he stuffed the Loser Machine Company shirt down his shorts and got caught red-handed. Employees detained the La Verne resident and despite his apology and promise not to return to the store, police arrested him for shoplifting. Mr. Sanchez was later released on $5,000 bond.
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A college student returning to Claremont after summer break became the victim of theft. An unknown suspect removed a combination padlock from the front of the victim’s plywood valet storage pod located on the 200 block of E. Bonita Avenue and stole its contents. The victim shared the pod with another male student when she vacated her dorm room at Pomona College for the summer. The other student retreived his items on August 15, but when his storage-mate returned to school on August 22, the pod was empty. Property loss is estimated to be $10,000 and includes a flat-panel television, a violin with gold accents, $5,000 in Louis Vuitton purses, shoes, a Nintendo Wii consol, as well as various books and toiletries. The investigation remains ongoing.
Monday, August 24
A pair of thieves turned violent on a Trader Joe’s employee who stopped them from stealing from the store. According to Lt. Ciszek, two females entered the popular grocery store around 4:25 p.m. and loaded up their cart with three bottles of Patron silver tequila, a bag of TJ’s Caramel Popcorn, two lemons and two limes valued at $136.91 and walked out the east exit door without paying for the items. A 46-year-old male employee confronted the gals and after a bit of a struggle, pulled the cart away from them. While standing about five feet away, one of the suspects held a knife towards the victim and said, “I’m going to get you f*@#er!” A witness, fearing for the employee’s safety, went over to help, but the suspect walked away, entered an awaiting tan Buick sedan and fled the location. The investigation remains ongoing.
—Angela Bailey
news@claremont-courier.com
