Email from Los Angeles Police Protective League Daily News & Updates Law Enforcement News Alleged Crips leader, rap entrepreneur 'Big U' appears in DTLA courtroom Alleged Los Angeles gang leader and so-called rap "godfather'' Eugene Henley Jr., known as "Big U,'' was ordered to remain behind bars Thursday pending a detention hearing in federal court at the end of the month. Henley, charged in a federal complaint alleging an array of racketeering crimes, including extortion, human trafficking, fraud and the 2021 murder of an aspiring rap musician, surrendered to law enforcement Wednesday as investigators fanned out to find him. A magistrate judge ordered him to remain in federal custody at least until his detention hearing in downtown L.A. on March 31. His arraignment was scheduled for April 8. No plea was taken at Henley's initial court appearance Thursday. Prior to turning himself in, the self-described anti-gang activist from the South L.A. community of Hyde Park, posted videos on Instagram denying the accusations. "I'm looking at all these charges in the news,'' he said. "I'm heading back to LA. Ain't going to be no real evidence. Ain't going to be no real nothing ... Now, they're saying all that stuff to assassinate my character.'' ABC 7 South LA deadly morning shooting under investigation An investigation was underway in South Los Angeles after a man was fatally shot on the morning of Friday, March 21. An official with the Los Angeles Police Department said they received a shots fired call at 7:13 a.m. from the 440 block of E. 20th Street, between Maple Avenue and Trinity St., in South LA's Historic South-Central neighborhood. Witnesses told arriving officers that they saw someone wearing a backpack running away from the area after shots were fired. The victim was pronounced dead at the scene and homicide detectives were called in to investigate. While the crime occurred near Santee High School, the school was not placed on lockdown. The name of the victim has not been released. In addition, the LAPD has not confirmed if the suspect has been taken into custody. FOX 11 L.A. man stabbed, shot and pushed off cliff lives to testify about alleged cartel hit High in the mountains above Los Angeles, the kidnappers pressed a gun against Juan’s stomach and handed him a phone after making a call on FaceTime. Juan, who testified at a preliminary hearing Tuesday in L.A. County without revealing his last name, said he recognized his neighbor’s face on the screen that morning last February. Juan said he considered the neighbor, Francisco Javier Perez, a friend. What he didn’t know was his neighbor had a secret life. Perez was a high-level drug trafficker with connections to an unnamed Mexican drug cartel, prosecutors wrote in court papers. Prosecutors charge that Juan was kidnapped, stabbed, shot and pushed off a cliff after Perez ordered him killed. But the men Perez allegedly hired botched the job — allowing Juan to escape and testify about what were supposed to be his last moments. Perez’s attorney, Jennifer Gitlin, said she’d seen no evidence her client was affiliated with a cartel. He has pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted murder, kidnapping, robbery, drug trafficking and conspiracy to commit murder. The case against Perez, who is accused of orchestrating the abduction from Tijuana, is a rare example, authorities said, of extreme cartel violence playing out on U.S. soil. Los Angeles Times Suspects break into West Hills home during daytime burglary The Los Angeles Police Department is searching for a burglary crew behind a daytime break-in at a West Hills home Thursday morning. A neighbor said he saw people placing what he believed was a hidden camera in the bushes the night before the burglary. "Saw just some suspicious activity, like a car pulled up and two people hopped out," he said. "They were going into the bush across from my house, putting something in it." The resident said the same car, a white Kia, came back to the neighborhood at around 11 a.m. to pick up at least four masked suspects after they rushed out of a home with bags and a camera in hand. "Four or five people come out with masks on," he said." They ran out, hopped in the whip, and then before they took off, they grabbed the camera they dropped off last night." Neighbors said this is not the first time that one of their homes has been broken into. Resident Eran Chen shared his frustrations with the police after a recent burglary at his house. CBS 2 Suspects used explosives to break into Target, ATM in West Hills, police say Police say explosives were used to break into a Target and ATM in the West Hills area of Los Angeles. The incident happened late Wednesday night on Fallbrook Avenue, according to the L.A. Police Department. When officers responded to the store, they found the front doors had been shattered. There was also damage seen inside the store. It's not clear how much money was taken from the ATM. No injuries were reported, and a description of the suspects was not available. The bomb squad and FBI are both investigating. ABC 7 Gun found in backpack of student at Los Angeles area middle school An investigation is underway after a gun was found in the backpack of a student at a school in Manhattan Beach, the local school district says. The incident was detailed in an email to parents from Manhattan Beach Unified School District Superintendent Dr. John Bowes. The email says that on Wednesday, a staff member at Manhattan Beach Middle School overheard a conversation between students near the end of the school day that led to the opening of an investigation. After that point, a staff member opened the backpack of a student. A firearm was found inside the backpack, the district says. The firearm was not loaded. The Manhattan Beach Police Department and school resource officers responded to the campus immediately, though it’s not currently clear if a student was placed under arrest. “The MBPD investigation is ongoing, and we are working closely with them. Due to this, we cannot share additional details,” the email reads in part. According to the district, authorities believe the incident was isolated and there is no ongoing threat. KTLA 5 AKs, explosives and drugs seized from LA County street gang Los Angeles County deputies recovered nearly two dozen guns, explosives and drugs during an extensive series of raids on Thursday. The joint operation with the FBI served search warrants at 18 locations in Lancaster and Palmdale related to members of an unnamed street gang, according to the LA County Sheriff's Department. Investigators arrested 13 people for numerous felony charges related to firearms, drugs and explosives possession. During the searches, detectives found 23 firearms, including two AK-47-style rifles and at least one fully automatic weapon. Investigators also found high-capacity magazines, ammunition and large amounts of drugs, including methamphetamine. The department's bomb squad also recovered what they believed were C-4 explosives and a mortar. C-4 is a plastic explosive typically used by militaries. All of the suspects were taken to the Palmdale Sheriff's Station to be held on $0 bail. Their court date is Monday, March 24. Detectives asked anyone with information on the case to contact Operation Safe Streets Bureau Lt. Daniel Rodriguez at (310) 680-2511. CBS 2 Three kids believed to have ingested fentanyl laced pills at California daycare An investigation is underway after three kids appeared to have ingested fentanyl-laced pills at a daycare in Victorville. On Tuesday, March 18, deputies from the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department Victorville Station responded to La Petite Academy on 14040 Bear Valley Road in Victorville after reports of unknown blue pills found in a classroom. Officials say La Petite staff collected the pills and immediately notified law enforcement. The department said the responding deputy recognized the blue pills with "M30" imprinted on them as possible counterfeit pills which may contain fentanyl. La Petite staff reviewed surveillance video and identified at least three children who appeared to have ingested the pills. The children, along with two staff members, were treated at local hospitals where at least one child tested positive for fentanyl. FOX 11 California deputy stabbed in neck as she performs homeless outreach Authorities have arrested a man suspected in the stabbing of an Orange County sheriff’s deputy while she was conducting routine homeless outreach in San Clemente. The incident took place around 2:15 p.m. Tuesday near the 1700 block of Avenida Estacion, according to the Sheriff’s Department. The deputy suffered a non-life-threatening 1-inch cut to her neck and was taken to a hospital and later released, department spokesperson Matthew Parrish said. The man ran off, prompting the Sheriff’s Department to issue temporary shelter-in-place warnings at two nearby schools and warn the public to stay away from the area while a manhunt ensued. On Wednesday afternoon, the department announced that state park rangers had found the suspect, Moses Paulisin, 35, at San Onofre State Beach. He was arrested and will be booked on suspicion of attempted murder, resisting arrest and assault with a deadly weapon, according to the department. The deputy is expected to make a full recovery. “All of our deputies are trained in the different resources available to homeless people,” Parrish said. “When they are out there doing their patrols, we encourage them to talk to homeless people, see if they are aware of these services and if they are able to connect them to help.” Los Angeles Times Man grabs Philadelphia officer’s gun outside hospital, shoots him before being fatally shot A man who had voluntarily agreed to be taken to a psychiatric hospital by Philadelphia police grabbed an officer’s gun outside the facility and wounded him before being fatally shot by another officer, the city police commissioner said, noting the wounded officer’s bulletproof vest spared him from serious injury. The shooting occurred shortly before 1 p.m. at Friends Hospital, Commissioner Kevin Bethel said. He said the two city officers had encountered the man earlier Thursday after he was seen walking in traffic, and he agreed to go to the hospital for a mental health evaluation. The man was driven to the hospital in a police van but was not handcuffed because he had agreed to go voluntarily, Bethel said. As the officers were speaking with him after they arrived, the man became combative and attacked one of the officers. One officer deployed a TASER at the man, who continued to struggle as all three men fell to the ground. The man took an officer’s gun and started firing, wounding that officer, who was struck at the base of his vest. Public Safety News 1 hospitalized after Pacoima home partially collapses in explosion; fireworks eyed as possible cause A man was hospitalized in critical condition after a home in Pacoima was partially destroyed in an explosion that was possibly caused by fireworks, officials said. The incident was reported around 9 a.m. Thursday at Remington Street and Remick Avenue, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. AIR7 was over the scene where extensive damage to the one-story structure was visible from overhead. The injured 40-year-old man suffered burns, according to the Fire Department. He told firefighters that no other people were home at the time of the blast. Twenty-six homes remained evacuated as of late Thursday. Fernando Emmel, who witnessed the explosion as he was driving past, said the force of the blast sent the roof of the structure high into the air before it collapsed. Emmel said he saw the injured man "covered in blisters and blood, his clothing was smoking," and he had a gash on the side of his neck. Emmel and several others rushed to help the man before emergency responders arrived. ABC 7 Fire damages former location of the Pacific Dining Car restaurant in Westlake A fire damaged a vacant two-story office building in Westlake on Thursday, which was once the location of the historic Pacific Dining Car restaurant, authorities said. Firefighters dispatched at 6:53 a.m to 1310 W. 6th St. had the blaze out within 45 minutes of their arrival, the Los Angeles Fire Department reported. Fire companies at the scene made entry into a restaurant identified as the historic Pacific Dining Car, confirming that the bulk of the fire was in the attic and roof of that structure. The Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety were dispatched to the location to assess structural integrity and safety concerns of the building. No occupants have been found and no injuries have been reported. A cause of the fire was under investigation. NBC 4 About the LAPPL: Formed in 1923, the Los Angeles Police Protective League (LAPPL) represents more than 8,900 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. Listen To Our Podcast Los Angeles Police Protective League | 1308 W 8th St | Los Angeles, CA 90017 US Unsubscribe | Update Profile | Our Privacy Policy | Constant Contact Data Notice