Police Blotter: July 29, 2022
Friday, July 22
At 5:22 p.m. the Claremont Police Department received a trespassing in progress call from a handyman working at a home in the 600 block of Vista Dr. Police say Pomona resident Derian Nieto Moreno, 26, approached the handyman while he was working, threatened him, and said he was planning to return later and break into the home. Moreno allegedly told the worker, “I am high, man.” When officers arrived a short time later, they noticed signs Moreno was under the influence of a controlled substance and conducted field sobriety tests. Moreno was arrested and transported to the CPD jail where he became unresponsive and had to be transported to Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center. Because Moreno was not able to sign the citation when he was released from custody, it will be up to the district attorney’s office to file charges.
Between 5 p.m. and 2 a.m. the following morning, CPD officers participated in a directed enforcement operation in the area adjacent to Indian Hill Blvd. and the 10 Freeway.
Six officers divided into three teams conduced 18 traffic stops and six pedestrian stops, netting three felony arrests, five misdemeanor arrests and one citation for drinking alcohol in public. The following four entries are related to this special detail.
At 7:16 p.m. officers saw a car with an equipment violation at Indian Hill Blvd. at the 10 Freeway and conducted a traffic stop. Officers questioned a passenger, Ontario resident George Bratcher, 30. A records check turned up a felony no bail warrant from Riverside County, and he was arrested and transported to the police station. Prior to escorting him into the jail area, officers pointed to a big red sign stating that suspects who bring a controlled substance into the jail will be charged with a felony. Bratcher then advised officers he had methamphetamine inside his underwear. He was issued a citation for the drugs and held on the warrant until he could be transported to Riverside.
Officers noticed another car with numerous equipment violations, this time in the 700 block of S. Indian Hill, and pulled the driver over at 11:38 p.m. They contacted a passenger, Rancho Cucamonga resident Mura Renteria, 19, and a records check turned up two felony no-bail warrants out of Sacramento County. The driver, Los Angeles resident Travon McNeil, 25, allegedly provided another person’s name and date of birth.
Unfortunately, that person had a warrant, so McNeil was arrested. Through fingerprinting, officers discovered his true identity and found he had three misdemeanor warrants in San Bernardino County and one in Downey. He was held until Downey police could retrieve him. Renteria was transferred to West Valley Detention Center in Rancho Cucamonga for extradition to Sacramento. Two other people in the car were free to go.
At 8 p.m. police contacted a 60-year-old unhoused parolee walking through a parking lot in the 800 block of S. Indian Hill. A records check turned up a parole violation warrant in San Bernardino County. He was arrested for the warrant, and during a search officers allegedly found meth in his jeans pocket while a further search of his backpack turned up a pipe. He was transported to CPD jail, booked, issued a citation for the misdemeanor drug offense, and later transferred to West Valley Detention Center on the no-bail parole violation.
Saturday, July 23
In the final entry as part of the special detail, officers saw a car making an illegal U-turn at 12:49 a.m. on Indian Hill near American Ave. After pulling over the driver, Pomona resident Jose Saucedo, 36, police say they observed symptoms of alcohol intoxication. Saucedo allegedly admitted to drinking Bud Light. Following a field sobriety test, officers arrested him for DUI and transported him to CPD jail. Saucedo asked to have blood drawn but became argumentative when the nurse arrived and refused to give a sample. Later he was given a breath test, which police say he failed. He was held for detoxification and released with a citation to appear in Pomona Superior Court.
At 11:57 p.m. police were called to the Padua Hills Theater regarding a fight in progress. The caller told police one of the alleged combatants left the location in a car but had threatened to return with a gun. The witness was able to give officers a vehicle description and a partial license plate number. Police tracked the car down at Base Line Road and Padua Avenue and conducted a traffic stop.
The driver, Ontario resident Hunter Massoth, 19, allegedly admitted to a verbal altercation but said he made no mention of returning with a firearm. A records check revealed two active misdemeanor arrest warrants in San Bernardino County. He arrested for warrants and transported, booked, and released with a citation to appear in court.
Monday, July 25
During a patrol officers saw a car parked at a red curb on Monte Vista Avenue at Claremont Boulevard and conducted a traffic stop at 1:52 a.m. As officers approached, they noticed the car was running with the headlights on and allegedly saw La Puente resident Israel Lopez, 43, asleep behind the wheel. Officers then performed field sobriety tests, and Lopez was arrested for DUI. Police say he consented to a search of his car, and officers allegedly found cocaine. Lopez then picked up the additional charge of possession of a controlled substance and was transported to CPD jail and held for detoxification. He was later released with citation to appear in court.
At 8:36 p.m. officers were dispatched to the 800 block of S. Indian Hill on reports of prostitution in progress. Witnesses saw a woman, later identified as Highland resident Carlisa Smigielski, 26, get into a white Chevrolet Silverado and provided police with the license plate number. Officers stopped the Silverado a short distance away and questioned Smigielski, who allegedly said Fontana resident Dwight Felix, 35, offered her $50 for a sexual act and she agreed. She was arrested for prostitution.
While speaking with Felix, officers say he showed symptoms of alcohol intoxication and, following field sobriety tests, he was arrested for DUI and solicitation of a prostitute. Both were transported to CPD jail where Smigielski was released with a citation to appear in court. Felix was held for detoxification and later released with his own citation to appear in court.
Tuesday, July 26
At 2:51 a.m. CPD officers say they saw a U-Haul truck darting in and out of cul-de-sacs in a residential neighborhood. They conducted a traffic stop on Pembroke Court north of Radcliffe Drive and allegedly saw a woman, later identified as Upland resident Michelle Kesler, 53, rummaging through a trash can. A records check revealed Kesler had a felony no-bail warrant from San Bernardino County. She was arrested and transported to West Valley Detention Center.
