Man shot to death outside donut shop in Van Nuys, gunman at large

A man was shot and killed in a Van Nuys strip mall parking lot and an investigation of the shooting was underway Saturday. Los Angeles Police Department officers from the department's Van Nuys Station responded at 12:35 a.m. to the 16000 block of Vanowen Street between Woodley and Gloria avenues regarding a shooting. When they arrived, the officers learned the victim was standing by his vehicle outside a donut shop when he was approached by two suspects, who fired several shots at him, an LAPD spokesman told City News Service. The victim was struck by the gunfire and pronounced dead at the scene by Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics. Police said the suspects fled the scene in a vehicle. There was no suspect description.

ABC 7

Man pepper-sprayed, assaulted by burglars in Beverly Grove home invasion

Police are searching for two burglars who they say pepper-sprayed and assaulted a man during a home invasion in Beverly Grove. The burglary happened around 11:30 p.m. Friday when the thieves triggered an alarm while the homeowner was in his bedroom. The two burglars pepper-sprayed and assaulted the man before taking off with his valuables, according to police. Neighbors in the area say they were deeply disturbed to learn about the home invasion. “We need the city to get on board and then maybe patrol the city a little bit more. We pay taxes, we want to be safe and this doesn't feel safe at all," said Apollo, who lives in the area. About nine miles away and just a few minutes later, a family came face-to-face with robbers at their home in Sherman Oaks. The married couple and their toddler barricaded themselves in a room as the thieves ransacked the home, according to LAPD. “Nobody wants that to happen to them and nobody wants this to happen in their neighborhood," said Tavis Loafman, a Sherman Oaks resident. Police are still investigating the two home invasions. At this time, it's unclear if they are connected to one another.

NBC 4

Man allegedly fires gun at LAPD helicopter, is fatally shot by police

Authorities fatally shot a man in Reseda on Sunday evening after he allegedly fired a gun at a Los Angeles Police Department helicopter. The deadly shooting began with a call to police around 6:25 p.m. about an assault with a deadly weapon in the 6400 block of Reseda Boulevard, according to the LAPD. Upon arriving, officers said they saw a man run into an apartment complex near the intersection of Reseda and Victory boulevards. An LAPD helicopter also responded to the scene and reported that the suspect appeared to fire his handgun at the chopper. Initial reports indicated the helicopter was not struck. Police then pursued the suspect into the rear alley of the apartment complex, where a police shooting took place. Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics responded to the incident and pronounced the man dead at the scene. The Police Department’s Force Investigation Division is investigating the shooting. The suspect’s handgun was recovered and will be examined alongside video and physical evidence, authorities said. No officers or civilians were injured during the incident, and there are no other suspects, police said. 

Los Angeles Times

Police searching for three suspects who violently robbed person of watch in Beverly Hills

Police are searching for three suspects who allegedly robbed someone of their watch outside of a Beverly Hills jewelry store on Saturday. It happened at around 4:20 p.m. in the 2300 block of N. Camden Drive, according to the Beverly Hills Police Department. SkyCal flew over the scene, where officers could be seen speaking with people outside of Victorian Rose, a clothing and jewelry store. Police say that the suspects, all of which were wearing dark clothing and face masks, used bodily force to take the victim's watch before fleeing the scene. They were last seen heading towards Wilshire Boulevard in a black sedan. The victim suffered minor injuries in the incident but police did not know if they required hospitalization. No further information was provided. 

CBS 2

Burglary suspect found inside Beverly Center department store

Emergency crews responding to an alarm at the Beverly Center in Los Angeles’ Beverly Grove neighborhood noticed a burglary suspect still inside a department store early Monday morning. Video from the scene around 3 a.m. showed Los Angeles Fire Department trucks outside the Marshalls store located in the shopping center on Beverly and La Cienega boulevards. Crews found a shattered glass window and a man still inside, allegedly burglarizing the store, freelance media firm KNN reported. Officers from the Los Angeles Police Department made contact with the male suspect and eventually took him into custody. The suspect did not appear to be resisting officers as he was handcuffed and searched outside the store. The Beverly Center was one of several high-profile shopping centers targeted in a series of flash mob robberies that made headlines in 2023. The Beverly Center’s Versace Store was robbed during the incident.

KTLA 5

‘You’re kidding me’: L.A. tour company owner fed up after 2 burglaries in a month

Targeted for the second time in a month and for the third time since 2023, the owner of a Central Los Angeles tour company is pleading for help to protect his business. LAPD said that on both March 21 and April 18, officers responded to Another Side of Los Angeles Tours, located at 1080 La Cienega Boulevard in Carthay, for reports of a burglary. “My Good Friday started with a phone call from the police department saying my office had been broken into,” said owner Kenneth Lippman. “Not a good Friday for me.” In this latest break-in, Lippman told KTLA’s Carlos Saucedo that the thieves got away with three E-bikes worth up to $2,500 and caused thousands more in damages. “They were there at 3 a.m. throwing a brick through my front door,” said Lippman. Surveillance video captured the moment suspects threw a brick through a glass window and, later, when they walked away with three electric segways. “To prevent this from happening in the future, we have to put in a gate from floor to ceiling that’s costing me $4,000,” Lippman explained.

KTLA 5

Trees hacked by chainsaw-wielding vandals in DTLA

An investigation is underway after chainsaw-wielding vandals apparently chopped down several trees in downtown Los Angeles over the weekend. Pictures of the downed trees circulated on social media, showing the hacked trees along South Grand Avenue between First Street and Wilshire Boulevard. A spokesperson for the Los Angeles Police Department told City News Service on Sunday that the watch commander had no knowledge of the incidents or of a report being taken, and that police were not reviewing footage at this time.

FOX 11

Criminals using $20 'distraction' tactic to scam victims

"It’s your lucky day. You’re so lucky. You’re full of luck." That’s what Sarah — who asked us to withhold her last name — says a stranger told her as she stood at the checkout counter at a Ralphs grocery store in Van Nuys. But it wasn’t her lucky day — it was the setup for a classic $20 distraction scam. By the time it was over, thousands of dollars had vanished from both her and her daughter’s bank accounts. On Wednesday, April 16, Sarah was shopping at the Ralphs on Saticoy Street and Louise Avenue. As she entered her PIN to pay with her debit card, a man approached her and claimed she had dropped a $20 bill. "He came much closer to me and was kind of pushing the $20 into my wallet," Sarah recalled. "I said, ‘No, I don’t think I did.’" She tried to brush it off, insisting the cash wasn’t hers. "I’m like, ‘No, this is yours, this isn’t mine.’" But the encounter didn’t end there. As she walked back to her car, the same man — now joined by a woman — followed her, still urging her to take the $20 while invading her personal space. "I knew it wasn’t mine... the reason I was getting cash back is because I only had a couple of dollars," she said. Feeling uneasy, Sarah checked her wallet in the car. Her cash was still there — but something far more valuable was missing. "My heart sank because my debit card wasn’t there."

FOX 11

Convicted killer who escaped from California custody, allegedly shot Mexican police officer, is recaptured

A convicted Los Angeles County murderer who escaped from custody in California and then fled to Mexico — where he allegedly shot and killed a police officer who was trying to apprehend him — was arrested in Tijuana this week, Mexican authorities said. The attorney general‘s office of the state of Baja California announced that Cesar Hernandez, 35, had been captured Thursday in a special operation dubbed “Gacela,” meaning gazelle. He was wanted in Mexico in connection with the April 9 shooting death of Mexican police commander Abigail Esparza Reyes, which took place during an attempt to arrest him in Tijuana. Reyes was a member of a specialized investigative unit known as “Gringo Hunters,” which works to apprehend fugitives who have fled to Mexico from the U.S., according to reporting from Reuters. Authorities told the wire service that Reyes had led the unit’s regional team for eight years and carried out more than 400 operations. “Abigail’s life will be honored, and her death will not go unpunished,” Baja California Gov. Marina del Pilar Ávila Olmeda said in Spanish in a statement on social media earlier this month. In 2019, Hernandez was sentenced to 80 years to life for killing a man outside of a bar in Southeast Los Angeles, a second-strike offense, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

Los Angeles Times

Woman’s body discovered in Los Angeles River

A death investigation is underway after a woman’s body was discovered in the Los Angeles River Friday. Los Angeles police received reports of a body in the river near Riverside Drive by the 5 Freeway at 7:42 a.m. Crews with the Los Angeles Fire Department arrived at the scene and recovered the body from the water. It’s unclear when the woman died or how long her body was at the location. No further details, including her identity, were released as the authorities continue the investigation. Anyone with additional information on the case can call LAPD at 1-877-527-3247.

KTLA 5

Woman severly burned in Leimert Park four-plex fire

A woman suffered severe burns in a fire that burned a first-floor unit of a two-story residential four-plex in the Leimert Park neighborhood of Los Angeles Saturday. The fire was reported at 4:12 p.m. Saturday at 3011 W. Stocker Place, near Audubon Middle School, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department's Brian Humphrey. It took 40 firefighters 18 minutes to put out the heavy flames in the first-floor unit that caused some damage to the unit directly above, Humphrey said. A woman with severe burn injuries was taken to a hospital by paramedics in serious condition, he said. No other injuries were reported. The cause of the fire was under investigation, Humphrey said.

NBC 4

Family jolted awake after car crashes through their living room in North Hills

A North Hills family was jolted awake overnight after the driver of a Mercedes slammed into their living room. The crash happened around 1:45 a.m. Saturday near Nordhoff Street and Noble Avenue. Firefighters found the car lodged deep into the home. There were no reported injuries, but the damage was extensive. One person was arrested for DUI, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

ABC 7

Large Rubbish Fire in DTLA Briefly Threatens Commercial Building

A greater-alarm fire consumed a large pile of trash outside a downtown Los Angeles commercial building, but only filled the structure with smoke. The fire was reported at 6:07 p.m. Saturday in the 2000 block of East 25th Street, near Santa Fe Avenue, said Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Brian Humphrey. It was extinguished in under half an hour. Television video from over the scene showed firefighters used foam to put out the blaze near railroad tracks. No injuries were reported, Humphrey said. The cause was under investigation.

MyNewsLA

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.