Highlighted Activity for the Weekdays of April 8-10, 2013

Grand Theft From a Vehicle

April 10, overnight, three victims had their catalytic converters stolen off their vehicles.  The incidents occurred in the 600 block of West Olive, 500 block of West Maple and the 400 block of West Lime.  The investigation is continuing.

Detective Bureau Case Follow-Up

March 26, an officer responded to and conducted a burglary investigation at a business in the 100 block of West Walnut, Antiques of Fairoaks.  Sellers rent cases from the business owner to display and sell their products.  Suspect(s) broke into the location overnight and stole merchandise from the cases.  Four victims were identified.

One of the victims found and identified some of her property being sold on eBay and contacted police.  She recognized not only the items, but also the description of the items she had written on the tags.  Through investigation, detectives found information on the seller, and the investigation led to an address in Tujunga. 

A search warrant for the location in Tujunga was written and served on April 10 at 5:30 a.m.  The property/residence in Tujunga was extremely large, so Monrovia detectives requested assistance from the West San Gabriel Valley Burglary Task Force, Pasadena Police Department and Glendale Police Department SWAT Teams.  The search warrant was executed without incident.  The objective of the search warrant was met and the victim’s property was recovered from the residence.

This case is a great example of multi-agency cooperation and teamwork.

Tip of the Week

The Month of April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month

In a growing effort to stem the dangerous tide of texting and cell phone use while driving, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has again designated April as National Distracted Driving Awareness Month.  During the Month of April, the Monrovia Police Department and more than 225 local law enforcement agencies throughout California will crack down on drivers text messaging and talking on their hand-held cell phones behind the wheel.  Monrovia officers will enforce a “zero tolerance” policy. 

The first two years of this effort have had a tremendous affect in heightening public awareness of the dangers of distracted driving.  The intention of this continued enforcement effort is to turn that awareness into a behavior change to save lives.  If you become tempted to answer, send that text, or make that quick call while driving, Don’t – it’s NOT worth it! 

For more information on distracted driving awareness click on the Monrovia Police Department Press Release or California Office of Traffic Safety.