Police blotter 2-6-15
Tuesday, January 27
A Claremont driver had trouble with her accelerator pedal and collided with a city sign. According to Lieutenant Mike Ciszek, the 66-year-old female driver was traveling northbound on Indian Hill Boulevard around 12:11 p.m. when she discovered an acceleration problem with Infiniti G37. She turned into the driveway of the Chevron/McDonald’s near Auto Center Drive where the car accelerated out of control and collided with a speed limit sign and a tree. A passenger in the car complained of pain to the left abdomen and was taken to Doctor’s Hospital Medical Center in Montclair. Despite complains of chest pain and a scrape to her forehead, the driver refused transport to the hospital.
****
A bold burglar went right through the front door of a Claremont residence in broad daylight. Around 11:30 a.m., the bandit broke a small hole in a decorative window on the door, unlocked the deadbolt and entered the home located on the 500 block of Miramar Avenue. Once inside, the thief ransacked several rooms before making off with a jewelry box located in the master bedroom. The $200 sterling silver jewelry box contained $4,000 princess cut diamond earrings, $200 in miscellaneous jewelry and $400 in cash. The items have not been recovered.
****
A stolen vehicle has been recovered and a suspect arrested thanks to the aid of the city’s Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR). A 2014 GMC Savana, driven by Rita Ochoa and reported stolen from UHaul in Pico Rivera, was spotted around 2:30 p.m. in Claremont. Officers made contact with the 39-year-old driver near Foothill Boulevard and Towne Avenue and arrested the Pico Rivera resident for possession of a stolen vehicle. Her passenger, 21-year-old Victor Leyva of Los Angeles, was also arrested on an outstanding warrant.
Wednesday, January 28
Unholy things sometimes happen on holy school grounds. While on campus at the School of Theology around 4:15 p.m., a man left his leather bag containing his Apple computer on a bench next to the church. When he returned one hour later, the victim was surprised to discover his bag was no longer there. Reported missing is a $2,000 MacBook Air, a $200 brown leather computer bag, a $500 calendar of classes and $200 in miscellaneous books.
****
A Rancho Cucamonga resident leaving a Claremont skatepark at dusk was robbed at knifepoint. The 19-year-old victim was walking on Indian Hill Boulevard around 5:30 p.m. when three unknown hooligans approached him from behind. “I have a knife, don’t do anything dumb or stupid,” said one male voice before taking the victim’s iPhone and wallet. The perpetrators fled the location through the parking lot and have not been located.
Thursday, January 29
As one Claremont resident found out, putting your belongings in a safe doesn’t mean they won’t get stolen. Between noon and 4:30 p.m., unknown thieves broke into a home located on the 900 block of Westminster Place by smashing the glass on the residence’s French doors. Once inside, the bandits located a safe containing $2,000 in cash, birth certificates, jewelry and small electronics and fled the premises with the coffer. The safe was later located in Pomona with the personal documents still inside, however the aforementioned items remain missing.
Friday, January 30
Here’s something you won’t see on a rerun of “Happy Days”: Richard Cunningham arrested for possession of a controlled substance. While searching Claremont Lodge for a person wanted by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, Claremont officers came in contact with Mr. Cunningham and conducted a search of his person. Police located a small plastic bag containing methamphetamine in the Chino resident’s rear pocket. An additional search by Dodger, the department’s 3-year-old drug dog, also located methamphetamine and a pipe in the room. The 29-year-old was arrested, booked and released with a notice to appear in court on a future date.
****
A Norwalk man on his way to buy scratcher tickets became distracted by his phone at a crosswalk and caught the eye of Claremont Police when he broke the law. Officers were stopped at a red light near the 10 Freeway at 9:45 p.m. when they observed Kenneth Moreno walking northbound on Indian Hill through a crosswalk against the red hand. Police made contact with the 60-year-old man and a record check revealed he was on probation for drugs. After consenting to a search of his person, officers discovered as small bag in his jean’s pocket. “It’s meth, I forgot it was inside my pocket,” he admitted to officers. Mr. Moreno was arrested for possession of a controlled substance, booked and later released with a citation.
****
Disneyland gets a run for its money as one man proclaims Claremont is the happiest place on earth. Around 4 p.m., officers responded to the Metrolink train depot regarding a fight in progress. Pomona resident Allen Perez, 41, and Cameron Dawson, a 19-year-old transient, spoke with police and said they’d been “play fighting.” Officers asked Mr. Perez if he knew where he was to which he replied, “The happiest place on earth!” With a half empty bottle of Fleischmann’s Royal Vodka nearby and both men exhibiting signs of public intoxication, they were arrested and transported to jail. This is the second arrest for Mr. Perez this week for the same offense. He’s been arrested in Claremont over 20 times in the past two years.
Sunday, February 1
Kudos to a Claremont man who knew he’d had too much to drink and called police on himself. According to Lt. Ciszek, officers arrived to the 500 block of south Indian Hill Boulevard just after midnight where they found Michael Zarate standing outside his apartment. The 45-year-old admitted to police he was intoxicated and wanted to go to jail following a verbal altercation he’d had with a woman at the residence. A records check also revealed Mr. Zarate had an outstanding warrant for his arrest. Police transported him to jail where he was booked and held for detoxification.
—Angela Bailey
