By By Daily Press Staff
Crime Watch is a weekly snapshot of the Santa Monica Police Department, culled from their own reports. The following are arrests only. All parties are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
SUNDAY, FEB. 17, AT 6:55 P.M. Santa Monica police officers on routine patrol in the 800 block of Grand Street ran the license plate of a car parked at the Rest Haven Motel. The officers discovered that the car had been stolen on Feb. 12 in the LAPD’s Pacific Division. Officers went to the motel manager and were able to find the car theft suspect in his motel room. Officers also found the keys to the car, a stolen drivers license and a credit card belonging to someone else. Officers also discovered an ignition bypass switch and two laptop computers, along with various electronic equipment and several sets of car keys. Officers were able to make contact with the owner of the car who said that his car and the items in it were stolen from his home in Beverly Hills. The suspect was arrested for grand theft auto. He was identified as Troy Matthew Walls, 41, of Playa del Rey. No bail was set.
SUNDAY, FEB. 24, AT 3:20 A.M. Officers responded to the 2400 block of 28th Street after receiving a report about a car burglary in progress. Officers responding to the scene were flagged down by several witnesses who pointed out the suspect, who was walking away from the scene. Officers detained the suspect and confiscated items in his possession. Officers then spoke with the witnesses who said they saw the suspect walk away from a parked car carrying several items with him. Officers contacted the owner of the vehicle who said the items recovered were his. The items included a cell phone and charger, clothing and DVDs, all valued at $235. The suspect in custody was arrested for auto burglary. He was identified as Raafat Bikhit, 22. No bail information was available.
WEDNESDAY, FEB. 20, AT 6:15 A.M. Officers responded to the 900 block of Stanford Avenue regarding a report of an auto theft that occurred in the early morning hours. Officers were informed that the owners of the vehicle activated the OnStar auto safety and security system that shows law enforcement where the car is in real time. Officers used information provided by OnStar to locate the suspect and the vehicle on Stanford. Officers arrested the suspect for possession of a stolen vehicle and for possession of a small amount of cocaine. The victims told officers that they had parked the car in their garage and believe the suspect broke into their garage and found the keys to the car. The suspect was identified as Edward Anthony Mason, 35, of Santa Monica. No bail was set because Mason was on probation, police said.
WEDNESDAY, FEB. 20, AT 3:10 A.M. Officers responded to the 2600 block of Washington Avenue regarding an auto theft in progress. When officers arrived, they saw two men running away from the scene of the alleged theft. Officers apprehended the suspects about a block away. They recovered a couple of small flashlights and a set of keys that were thrown into some bushes. The officers then made contact with the owner of the vehicle, a truck with tool boxes containing power tools worth more than $6,000. It turns out that the truck had been broken into two times in the last two months. The owner said he was sleeping when the sound of someone breaking into his truck woke him up. He looked out his windows and observed two subjects in the front of the truck with flashlights. That’s when he called police. The suspects were arrested for auto burglary and possession of burglary tools. Suspect one was identified as Juan Gilberto Aldecoa-Sandova, 23, from the city of Bell. His bail was set at $20,586. He had a warrant for his arrest, police said. Suspect two was identified as Jose Estrella, 22, from Huntington Park. His bail was set at $30,000. He had two warrants for his arrest and he had a small amount of marijuana, police said.
SATURDAY, FEB. 16, AT 1:45 P.M. Police on routine patrol on the Third Street Promenade noticed a man they had prior contact with walking a bicycle while smoking a cigarette, a violation of the municipal code. Officers stopped the suspect and noticed that he had black spray paint on his hands and that the bike he was walking looked as if it had just been painted black. Suspicious, officers asked the suspect where he obtained the bike. The suspect gave several conflicting stories. Officers said the suspect had been arrested before for possession of a stolen bicycle, and figured he was at it again and placed him under arrest. In his possession officers found a small amount of marijuana. He was booked for possession of a stolen bicycle, possession of marijuana and for smoking on the promenade. The suspect was identified as Robert Barney, 19, a transient. His bail was set at $20,000.
WEDNESDAY, FEB. 20, AT 6:55 P.M. Officers on routine patrol at the corner of Fourth Street and Olympic Boulevard observed a suspect riding a bike at night without the proper lighting. Officers went to issue the suspect a ticket when they discovered that he had two fairly new iPods in his possession. The suspect said the had had purchased one iPod from a friend at a discount because the friend needed money. The other iPod he received in exchange for some wheels and trucks on a skateboard. Officers checked out the iPods and found information regarding the true owner of the device. Officers contacted the owner who said he had bought the iPod for his daughter seven months ago and that it had gone missing. Based on that information, officers arrested the suspect for possession of stolen property. The suspect was identified as Thomas Vincent Lucas, 24, of Santa Monica. His bail was set at $20,000.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on February 29, 2008. Read the original PDF.