Police blotter 2-12-21

Wednesday, February 3

Claremont Police Department officers on patrol say they noticed a silver 2015 Nissan speeding at 2:35 a.m. near Foothill Blvd. and Sumner Ave., and pulled it over. The driver, 29-year-old Rowland Heights resident Mykal Apodaca, was allegedly in possession of a hypodermic needle.  He was arrested for misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia, booked, and released with a citation to appear in Pomona Superior Court.

Police were summoned to Claremont City Hall, 207 Harvard Ave., at 4:42 p.m. regarding a man witnesses say was drunk and belligerent. Arriving officers met with William Fedorka, 72, from Los Angeles, and quickly determined he was likely intoxicated. He was arrested on a misdemeanor charge of drunk in public, and spent the evening sobering up in Claremont jail before being released with a citation to appear in court.

Thursday, February 4

Claremont officers on patrol near the corner of Cumberland Place and San Jose Ave. observed a black 2015 GMC with no front license plate rolling by about 12:28 a.m. and decided to investigate. After flashing their lights and getting the driver, Johnny Cervantes, a 26-year-old Fontana man, to stop the car, they allegedly found a small bag of methamphetamine inside. Mr. Cervantes was arrested for possession of a controlled substance, a misdemeanor, booked, and released with citation to appear.

Angeleno William Fedorka, persisting in his apparent interest in municipal business, was arrested again at city hall, this time for the misdemeanor charge of obstructing a public thoroughfare. Mr. Fedorka, 72, who was arrested the day before for allegedly being drunk in public at the same location, was said this time to have been blocking the entrance to city council chambers at 9:50 p.m. and refusing to budge. “We contacted him a few times and offered him numerous resources, which he refused,” said Claremont Police Department Detective Matt Hamill. “He stayed there, and we continued to receive complaints. He wouldn’t move so we arrested him.”

In the first of three consecutive car theft arrests, Claremont police picked up 35-year-old Cathedral City resident Brittney Edwards 10:34 p.m. It began when a license plate reading camera alerted dispatchers that a 2017 Nissan recently reported stolen in Palm Springs had entered the city limits. Police located the car at the Shell station, 747 S. Indian Hill Blvd., and arrested the driver, Ms. Edwards, without incident. She was booked for car theft and possession of a stolen vehicle, both misdemeanors, and released with a citation to appear for arraignment in Pomona Superior Court.

Friday, February 5

A 37-year-old Pomona man, Roland Bishop, was pulled over for a traffic violation at 11:53 a.m. while driving his 2004 Mitsubishi near Towne Ave. and Butte St. A records check turned up a no-bail felony probation violation warrant, and he was subsequently arrested. After booking, Mr. Bishop was transferred to the Inmate Reception Center in Los Angeles.

Claremont’s crime-stopping license plate reader camera caught another hot car when it alerted officers that a black 2007 Ford Expedition was in town. The driver, 24-year-old Claremont resident Resean Smith, was pulled over near the Claremont Lodge at 736 S. Indian Hill Blvd. at 8:43 p.m. Police say she had prior arrests for similar crimes, so she was booked on two felony charges of car theft and possession of a stolen vehicle. She was subsequently released with a citation to appear in court.

The city’s trusty camera picked up a third stolen car shortly after 11 p.m. This one, a gray 2013 Nissan Ultima, was recently purloined in Menifee and driven by Rachel Hexum, 34, also from Menifee. She was pulled over and then arrested near Towne Ave. and Foothill Blvd. for two felony charges of car theft and possession of a stolen vehicle. Ms. Hexum was booked and released with a citation to appear.

Saturday, February 6

Grabbing a page from the headlines, Claremont police arrested Jorge Huerta, 38, from Pomona, after finding a recently liberated catalytic converter and two Sawzall tools in the front seat of his 1994 Ford. The find, after police pulled over Mr. Huerta for a traffic violation near Indian Hill Blvd. and the 10 freeway at 2:53 a.m., is becoming increasingly common as thieves are turning the valuable precious metals found in the exhaust emission control devices into cash. Mr. Huerta was charged with receiving stolen property, a felony. His passenger, Joseph Beatty, 37, from Claremont, was arrested for two misdemeanors, possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia, after police allegedly found methamphetamine and a meth pipe. Both men were booked and released with citations to appear in court.

Claremont cofficers on patrol near the corner of Cumberland Place and San Jose Ave. observed a black 2015 GMC with no front license plate rolling by about 12:28 a.m. and decided to investigate. After flashing their lights and getting the driver, Johnny Cervantes, a 26-year-old Fontana man, to stop the car, they allegedly found a small bag of methamphetamine inside. Mr. Cervantes was arrested for possession of a controlled substance, a misdemeanor, booked, and released with citation to appear.

Angeleno William Fedorka, persisting in his apparent interest in municipal business, was arrested again at city hall, this time for the misdemeanor charge of obstructing a public thoroughfare. Mr. Fedorka, 72, who was arrested the day before for allegedly being drunk in public at the same location, was said this time to have been blocking the entrance to city council chambers at 9:50 p.m. and refusing to budge. “We contacted him a few times and offered him numerous resources, which he refused,” said Claremont Police Department Detective Matt Hamill. “He stayed there, and we continued to receive complaints. He wouldn’t move so we arrested him.”

In the first of three consecutive car theft arrests, Claremont police picked up 35-year-old Cathedral City resident Brittney Edwards 10:34 p.m. It began when a license plate reading camera alerted dispatchers that a 2017 Nissan recently reported stolen in Palm Springs had entered the city limits. Police located the car at the Shell station, 747 S. Indian Hill Blvd., and arrested the driver, Ms. Edwards, without incident. She was booked for car theft and possession of a stolen vehicle, both misdemeanors, and released with a citation to appear for arraignment in Pomona Superior Court.