CPD gets help to track down suspect for car theft

On Tuesday, July14 the Claremont Police Department called in the cavalry after a Pomona man suspected of auto theft took off running and remained at large for more than an hour. CPD officers got curious after seeing a truck parked near Bonita and Towne Avenues at 1 p.m. They ran the plates of the 2003 Black Chevrolet Silverado and found it was reported stolen July 12 out of San Bernardino County. As they approached the car’s driver, Alfonzo Diaz, 26, made a run for it. Unable to catch him, Claremont police began a search of the area, assisted by the La Verne Police Department, a San Bernardino County Sherriff’s Department helicopter, and a criminal sniffing dog from the Chino Police Department. A little more than an hour later they found Mr. Diaz hiding in some bushes in a yard near Foothill Boulevard and Towne Avenue. Mr. Diaz was arrested and charged with felony grand theft auto and resisting arrest, a misdemeanor. He spent a couple days in the Claremont jail before his arraignment July 16 at Pomona Superior Court.