By Daily Press staff
Crime Watch is a weekly series culled from reports provided by the Santa Monica Police Department. These are arrests only. All parties are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
By Daily Press staff
Sunday, May 6, at 10:55 p.m.
Santa Monica police officers on routine patrol in the 1700 block of Lincoln Boulevard noticed a car parked suspiciously on the side of the road. Officers approached the car to investigate and noticed two occupants fighting. Officers were able to separate the two and discovered that one of the occupants had a knife. The victim said he was in the drive-through at Jack In The Box just a few moments earlier and the suspect had asked him for some money to buy food. When the victim refused, the two began to argue. The argument escalated once the food arrived, at which time the two started to throw blows. The victim had a knife in his pocket that had fallen out during the altercation. The suspect allegedly picked up the knife and tried to stab the victim with it. The suspect was arrested for assault with a deadly weapon. He was identified as Carlos Albert Valencia, 36, from Los Angeles. Valencia was on probation and had five outstanding warrants at the time of his arrest, police said. No bail was set.
Wednesday, May 9, at 1:30 a.m.
Officers on routine patrol in the 2300 block of Lincoln Boulevard noticed a man acting suspiciously. Officers made a U-turn and approached the man to see if he was OK. The man told officers that he was acting strange because he was nervous. He told them that he had just been stopped by officers and ticketed. He produced the ticket and officers ran his name through a computer and discovered he had two outstanding warrants. As officers were about to handcuff the suspect, he reached in his pocket and pulled out a small amount of rock cocaine and tried to stomp on it, police said. Officers were able to grab the drugs. He was arrested for drug possession and outstanding warrants. He was identified as Anthony Kevin Beckley, 47, a transient. His bail was set at $11,000.
Sunday, May 13, at 2:55 a.m.
Officers responded to the 1500 block of Ocean Avenue — Travel Lodge Hotel — regarding a report of a burglar on the premise. When officers arrived, they apprehended the suspect in the alley behind the hotel. He admitted that he had just come from a hotel room. Officers searched the suspect and found several credit cards that did not belong to him, as well as two hotel access cards for a Radisson and a Marriott. The suspect was arrested for possession of stolen property. Police said a witness said she was in her hotel room when the suspect broke in. When confronted, he ran into a bathroom and climbed out of the window. The suspect was identified as Michael Oaks, 47, from Utah, His bail was set at $20,000.
Tuesday, May 8, at 2:55 a.m.
Officers responded to the 1400 block of Wilshire Boulevard — Bank of America — regarding a burglary investigation. When officers arrived, they spoke with bank security who said a Brinks security guard in charge of transporting cash had been caught on videotape stealing thousands of dollars. Officers checked with other banks in the area that contract with Brinks and discovered the employee had stolen roughly $65,000 from several banks over dating back to February. Police arresyed Barrington Jeffrey Harding, 34, from Hawthorne. No bail was set.
Staff Writer Kevin Herrera compiled these reports.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on May 18, 2007. Read the original PDF.