Recent Residential Burglaries

A wrap-up of local neighborhood crimes from SSA Security Group and other sources:

On Monday, March 6, according to neighbors’ reports on social media, there was an armed robbery on the 700 block of S. Citrus Ave. around 9 p.m. A resident unloading groceries was held up from behind as he approached his front door.  The assailant asked for cash and fled.

Last Friday, March 10, there was a residential burglary sometime during the day in the 100 Block of N. Lucerne Ave.

Later that day,  a residence in the gated community of Fremont Place was burglarized when thieves apparently entered from the street, dropped down a side gate and broke a window to gain entry to the back of the house. The burglars ransacked the house, looking for valuables. The alarm was not on at the time.

At the Fremont Place Association annual meeting last night, the residents explained they have taken measures to increase security at the home and urged others to do the same. Long considered one of the safest neighborhoods in the area, Fremont Place will now conduct a thorough review of the neighborhood security and take steps to increase scrutiny at the entrance to the neighborhood to document workers and visitors to the neighborhood.

At 1:45 pm on Sunday, March 12, an attempted street robbery occurred in the 300 block N. Mansfield Ave. The male victim was outside his house with his children when two suspects pulled up in a car at the curb. One of the suspects, a white male, pointed a gun at the victim and demanded property. The victim told his children to go inside the house, and they complied. He then told the suspect he had nothing to give (or refused to give anything to them) and they immediately drove away. No other information was available, according to SSA.

A resident in the 200 block of S. McCadden Place in Hancock Park was burglarized on Sunday, March 12,  between 6 pm and 10 pm. While the residents were out for dinner,  intruders broke a rear window to get into the house and the house was ransacked. Unknown items were taken. The house alarm was not on.

The Hancock Park Homeowners Association shared a message from a resident who discovered on Monday morning that her car had been broken into while parked in her garage with the overhead garage door closed. According to an email from the resident, she opened the garage door and noticed the car door was open.  The car had been ransacked. Her husband’s car, parked next to hers, had not been touched. The resident speculated that intruders had had come in through another set of doors to the garage, which had been loosely fastened and easily pulled apart. Despite having dogs and a housekeeper whose bedroom is very close to the garage, no one heard any noise.

“I called Wilshire Division and they told me there had been four men they were chasing, about midnight Sunday night, near Oakwood and June,” wrote the resident in an email to the neighborhood. “Could have been one or two of them. Our house has an alarm system but not the garage. I consider that we were lucky….”

Also, last week, the Buzz heard rumors of a bank robbery at one of the banks on Larchmont Blvd. The Buzz was not able to confirm the report of the robbery from official LAPD sources, though it was reported in other local news sources and via emails from SSA Security Group. According to the SSA report, the Chase Bank was robbed by a thief with no gun, only a note. No suspect description was available and the suspects were gone upon arrival of LAPD.

SSA and LAPD offer the following Burglary Prevention Tips -Make your Home Look Lived in; even when you’re not there:

1. When you leave your home SET YOUR ALARM no matter how long you are gone, even for a short trip away from the home.
2. Know your neighbors and talk with them often.
3. If you do not have a reliable security company, have a trusted neighbor pick up your mail and newspapers.
4. Arrange for gardeners to continue to mow your lawn if you’re gone for an extended period.
5. Ask a neighbor to park a car in your driveway while you’re gone.
6. USE TIMED SWITCHES OR SMALL DIGITAL TIMERS on your lights, TV and stereo. Look for timers that turn on and off randomly, rather than on a set schedule.

Note; during a pretext visit, skilled burglars may pass by your home just after dark and into the evening to ascertain if anyone is home 

1. Don’t broadcast your absence on a note taped to your door or by announcing it on your telephone answering machine.
2. Turn your telephone ringer down or off. This way a burglar is less likely to hear the ringing of unanswered calls and realize no one is home.

PRETEXT OF A CRIME – ASCERTAINING IF ANYONE IS HOME 

1. Be sure entrance doors have wide-angle peepholes or view grills so you can see visitors without opening the door.
2. Respond verbally to door knocks/doorbells and then, without opening the door, ask anyone who comes to your door for identification before allowing them inside.
3. Call your security company to respond and identify anyone who is not expected or known.
4. Keep valuable papers and records, like stocks and bonds, duplicate copies of your will, valuable stamp and coin collections, and jewelry you don’t frequently wear, in your safe deposit box.
5. Give parking lot attendants and mechanics your ignition key only, not your house key. Don’t carry an identification tag on your key ring. This helps a would-be thief easily identify your home and vehicle.