Woman Pleads Guilty In Suspected Gang Killing Of Off-Duty LAPD Officer

A woman pleaded guilty Wednesday to her involvement in the killing of an off-duty Los Angeles police officer during an attempted robbery last year. Haylee Marie Grisham pleaded guilty to a single count of violent crime in aid of racketeering in the January 2022 fatal shooting of Officer Fernando Arroyos, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office said. Arroyos was house hunting with his girlfriend and had stopped to take pictures of a place that was for sale when they were confronted by two would-be robbers. Arroyos tried to defend himself and his girlfriend, but he was shot during an exchange of gunfire, according to prosecutors. He died later at a hospital. Grisham, 18 , was not accused of firing the fatal shots. She accompanied her co-defendants — Jesse Contreras, Ernesto Cisneros, and Luis Alfredo de la Rosa Rios — as they committed the robbery and murder “to increase and maintain position” within the Florencia 13 gang, according to the federal charges. Grisham had been an associate of the gang at least since 2021, prosecutors said. Prosecutors allege that the defendants decided to target Arroyos after spotting him wearing gold chains around his neck.

Los Angeles Times

3 People Found Dead In Downtown Los Angeles, Prompting Investigation

Three people who may have overdosed on drugs were found dead inside a downtown Los Angeles building, prompting an investigation. The bodies were discovered when Los Angeles firefighters responded to a medical emergency in the 600 block of Wall Street around 3:14 p.m. Wednesday. Circumstances surrounding the deaths were not immediately available, but authorities say the victims were found on the sixth floor of the building. LAPD also responded after firefighters requested their assistance. Several ambulances and police cruisers were at the scene, footage showed. Sources tell Eyewitness News that narcotics may be a factor in the deaths. A fourth victim may have been found Tuesday night at the same location. 

ABC 7

Victim Of Fatal Van Nuys Shooting Identified

A 46-year-old man who was killed when a gunman shot him to death and wounded a 44-year-old man in Van Nuys was identified Thursday. Witnesses told Los Angeles Police Department officers who responded at 2 a.m. to a home in the 15100 block of Gilmore Street, west of Laurel Canyon Boulevard Saturday, that a man knocked on the door and when the victim responded, the suspect shot both victims and ran away, an LAPD spokeswoman told City News Service. The victim, Artyom Manukyan, was pronounced dead at the scene. Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics rushed the 44-year-old man to a hospital, where he was listed in stable condition, according to Officer Drake Madison of the LAPD’s Media Relations Division. Police had no suspect description.

MyNewsLA

2 Women Dead In Rollover Crash On 110 Freeway In South LA

Two women were killed after being ejected from a car in a solo-vehicle crash on the southbound Harbor (110) Freeway in South Los Angeles Thursday. California Highway Patrol officers were called at 1:40 a.m. near the Slauson exit where they found the vehicle on its side, according to CHP Officer Roberto Gomez. The four-door Nissan sedan was going at a high speed at the time of the crash, according to the CHP. Then it veered off the freeway and slammed into a freeway embankment before hitting a tree and rolling down. One of the two women ejected from the car was also struck by another car that was traveling south. The driver of that car stopped and called 911. The victims died at the scene. Traffic was backed up along the freeway as officers tried to clear the debris and complete the investigation. Lanes reopened at about 6:30 a.m. 

NBC 4

Police Search For Downtown LA Shooting Suspect

The Los Angeles Police Department is looking for a suspect who shot a man downtown Los Angeles Thursday morning. The shooting happened near LA Live at the intersection of South Figueroa Street and West Olympic Boulevard. Authorities arrived on the scene around 4 a.m. where they found man with multiple gunshot wounds. He was taken to a local hospital and is condition is unknown at this time. Police said it is unclear what lead to the shooting and no description of the suspect was given. The investigation is ongoing as LAPD search for the suspect they believe is still in the area.

CBS 2

Sparks Fly As LA Police Chase Suspect Refuses To Give Up In Pico-Union

An hour-long police chase came to an end in Los Angeles late Wednesday night. The chase came to an end around 11:30 p.m. in the Pico-Union area. The pursuit initially stemmed from the suspect being accused of driving a stolen vehicle. Around 10:45 p.m. – 20 minutes after the start of the pursuit – the suspect stopped in the middle of the chase to drop off two people from the sedan in the residential part of Pico-Union. It is unknown if the two people who hopped out of the car participated in any criminal activities or were wanted as suspects. A little before 11 p.m., a third passenger was dropped off mid-chase – also in the Pico-Union area. A little after 11:15 p.m., sparks were seen flying mid-chase as the suspect refused to give up despite the fact that the car was running on rims after driving over spike strips multiple times over the course of the pursuit. Over the course of the chase, the suspect drove back and forth between downtown Los Angeles and Pico-Union. The chase eventually came to an end, ending with two people in custody. Officials did not say where the car may have been stolen from. Officials feared during the chase that the suspect may be armed and dangerous.

FOX 11

Street Vendor In Her 60s Is Robbed In Lincoln Heights

A grandmother in her 60’s who works as a street vendor was robbed, and despite her fear of it happening again, she has to return to set up shop in order to make a living. Teresa Cruz sets up shop every day in Lincoln Heights. "She comes every day any time she can until 5 or 6 p.m. She is here at 8 in the morning and at her age still trying to do this it is a lot," said Emily Jacobo, her granddaughter. Jacobo says she works hard, lugging her products, including gold-plated rings, necklaces, and bracelets, down to her spot. "Street vending has been running in my family for quite a while. My grandma has been a vendor for a decade," Jacobo said. But on Sunday at 10:20 a.m., Jacobo says a man stopped by Cruz's setup in the 3000 block of North Broadway to ask the prices of her jewelry, only to return the next day to rob her. "Her rack has $600 of jewelry. It is an enormous loss for my grandma," Jacobo said. The man ran away, and sadly, Cruz was not able to stop him. She's struggling to work and worried it might happen again.

NBC 4

Panorama City Man Convicted In U.S. Capitol Riot

A San Fernando Valley man faces sentencing in July for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Edward Badalian, 28, of Panorama City, was convicted in federal court in the District of Columbia of conspiracy, obstruction of an official proceeding, and entering and remaining in a restricted building following a non-jury trial last month. The defendant remains on pre-trial release until sentencing on July 21, according to federal prosecutors. Badalian was charged in a superseding indictment returned in a case initially filed in March 2021 against Daniel Rodriguez, 40, of Fontana. Rodriguez was indicted at that time on charges including the assault of a Metropolitan Police Department officer. The superseding indictment adds a conspiracy charge. In February, Rodriguez pleaded guilty to four felonies, prosecutors said. According to the indictment, in the fall of 2020, Badalian, Rodriguez and others created a Telegram group chat, called the "Patriots 45 MAGA Gang," and used it as a platform to advocate violence against certain groups and individuals that either supported the 2020 presidential election results, supported what the group perceived as liberal, or communist ideologies, or held positions of authority in government.

FOX 11

3 Suspects Charged With Murder, Robbery In Shooting Death Of Man In Culver City

Three suspects facing murder and robbery charges have been arrested in connection with the shooting death of a man last month in Culver City, authorities announced Wednesday. The unidentified victim was found on March 30, at about 10:45 p.m., inside a vehicle in the 5900 block of West Washington Boulevard, according to the Culver City Police Department. He was suffering from a gunshot wound to his chest and was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Footage of the crime scene showed police tape around a 7-Eleven parking lot, with a white Mitsubishi sedan crashed into a building adjacent to the convenience store parking lot. Detectives with the Culver City Police Department began their investigation immediately and said multiple arrests were made on the night of the alleged murder. “On Tuesday, April 4th, the case was presented to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. The suspects were charged with Murder, Robbery, Possession of a firearm and Assault with a Deadly Weapon. All three suspects remain in custody,” a CCPD news release stated.  

KTLA 5

Authorities Seek Help Finding Disabled Man Who Requires Assistance

Authorities were seeking the public’s help Wednesday to find a 68-year-old man who requires medical attention. Douglas Edward Simon is described as White, 5-feet-10 inches tall, weighing 140 pounds, with gray hair and brown eyes. He uses a cane to walk. According to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, Simon was last seen wearing a gray jacket and gray pants Wednesday at 6 a.m. in the 3200 block of La Encina Way in Pasadena. Simon suffers from aphasia, which causes a speech disorder and his family is concerned for his well-being, sheriff’s officials said. Anyone with information regarding Simon’s whereabouts was encouraged to contact the sheriff’s Missing Persons Unit at 323-890-5500. Callers who choose to remain anonymous can contact Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.

MyNewsLA

Friend Who Bought Gun For Man Who Killed Detroit Officer Is Sentenced To Prison

A man who bought a pistol a friend used to fatally shoot Detroit police Officer Loren Courts last summer was sentenced Tuesday to two years in prison, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan announced. Sheldon Thomas, 27, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gershwin Drain. He pleaded guilty in December to making a false statement in the acquisition of a firearm that friend Ehmani Davis used to shoot and kill Courts during an ambush July 6 outside a shuttered salon on Joy Road near Marlowe. Thomas earlier was indicted and accused of buying a Century Arms Draco pistol from dealer Action Impact in Eastpointe. "Thomas admitted to lying on the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Federal Firearms Transaction Record Form 4473, by falsely certifying that he was the buyer of the firearm when he knew he was purchasing it for Ehmani Davis," investigators said in a statement Tuesday. Thomas gave Davis the firearm on June 7, the day of the purchase, according to the release.

The Detroit News

'We Kept Walking Toward The Sound Of Gunfire': Nashville Officers Detail How They Stopped School Shooter

The Metro Nashville Police Department officers who ended the mass shooting at a private Christian school in Tennessee that left six people dead spoke publicly for the first time about their training and stopping the shooter. Detective Sgt. Mathes and three of the detectives from his unit were among the first to enter the school on the morning of the shooting, ABC News reported. Mathes described how his training kicked in, recounting how he had to block out the sadness of stepping over a victim. "All of us stepped over a victim,” Mathes said, “I, to this day, don't know how I did that morally, but training is what kicked in." Officer Rex Engelbert was at the Metro Police Academy for business, which put him in the Midtown section of the city at the time of the shooting. "I really had no business being where I was,” Engelbert said, “I think you can call it fate or God or whatever you want, but I can't count on both my hands the irregularities that put me in that position when a call for service came out for a deadly aggression at a school.” Detective Michael Collazo, who works for Mathes, was completing administrative tasks when the call came in. 

PoliceOne

L.A. County Officials Ask For Help Identifying Woman Hospitalized For Days

LAC+USC Medical Center officials are asking for the public’s help in identifying a woman who has been hospitalized for days. The woman, who has been at the hospital for two days, is described as being 34 years old and 5 feet 5 inches tall with an average build. She has long wavy strawberry blond hair and blue/green eyes. The woman also has a tattoo of a connected yellow sun and baby blue moon on the lower right abdomen, official said. Anyone who has information about the woman, or knows how to contact her family members or loved ones is asked to call Yen Sau, a licensed clinical social worker at the hospital, at 323-409-4860.

KTLA 5

Narrow Race For 2nd Place In Council District 6 Special Election

Community relations manager Imelda Padilla was leading Wednesday in the special election to fill the Los Angeles City Council seat vacated by Nury Martinez, but the race for second place and a spot in a likely runoff remained tight between Marisa Alcaraz, Rose Grigoryan and Marco Santana. Padilla had 2,288 votes, or 25.55%, according to figures released Tuesday night by the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk. Alcaraz was second with 1,723 votes, 19.24%; Grigoryan was third with 1,610 votes, 17.98%; and Santana was fourth with 1,568 votes, 17.51%. Small business owner Issac Kim was the only other candidate in the field of seven to top 10%, with 1,033 votes, or 11.53%. If no candidate receives a majority, there will be a runoff between the top two vote getters, with the deadline to cast ballots June 27. It was unclear how many ballots remain to be counted. The next vote-counting update is scheduled to be released Friday afternoon.

ABC 7

About the LAPPL: Formed in 1923, the Los Angeles Police Protective League (LAPPL) represents more than 9,200 dedicated and professional sworn members of the Los Angeles Police Department. The LAPPL serves to advance the interests of LAPD officers through legislative and legal advocacy, political action and education.