Email from Los Angeles Police Protective League Daily News & Updates   Law Enforcement News Ex-Con Found Guilty of Security Guard’s Killing Near USC An ex-con was found guilty Tuesday of murdering a security guard outside a private student housing complex near USC. Jurors deliberated just over two hours before convicting Alexander Crawford, now 33, of first-degree murder for the late-night shooting of Jave Garanganao on Dec. 27, 2022. The downtown Los Angeles jury also found true gun allegations against Crawford, who is facing 53 years to life in state prison, according to Deputy District Attorney Paul Przelomiec. Sentencing is set June 4 before Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Sam Ohta. Authorities said the security guard had asked Crawford earlier to leave the Lorenzo apartment complex in the 300 block of West Adams Boulevard, about a half-mile from the main USC campus. “We know this was an intentional shooting merely by the fact that he fired 10 rounds,” the prosecutor told jurors during his closing argument Monday. “I’m telling you this was a premeditated killing that he carried out.” MyNewsLA Man found murdered in North Hills home Police continue to investigate the death of a 36-year-old man who was found stabbed to death inside a North Hills home Tuesday night. Los Angeles Police Department officers arrived at a residence at Lemona Avenue and Acre Street, near the Pacoima Wash, around 9 p.m. A caller reported seeing blood in the hallway of a home where several people live. Arriving officers found a man suffering from multiple stab wounds in one of the bedrooms. He has been identified as Christopher Wilson and was pronounced dead at the scene. One of the victim's roommates said he was his foster brother and shared Wilson's social media page. He added that the 36-year-old man was a father. The roommate said he called 911 after seeing a large man suddenly run out of the home's side door. He added that Wilson was just beginning to turn his life around in the past few months. After overcoming addiction, Wilson had just begun a new job as a dog groomer in Calabasas, according to his roommate. CBS 2 Pacoima man arrested for ties to violent online network '764' that's targeting children The FBI has busted a Pacoima man for targeting children as part of the sexual exploitation and self-harm network known around the world as "764." Federal agents arrested 28-year-old Jose Henry Ayala Casamiro in early April, charging him with possession of child pornography. Ayala is accused of causing minors to produce child sexual abuse material as well as other video content depicting themselves engaging in self-harm. "The facts alleged in this complaint are disturbing," said U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli. "Criminals lurk in the internet's dark corners to prey on and do lasting damage to children. Let this arrest serve as notice to all online predators. We will find you and arrest you if you hurt children." Investigators say Ayala committed the crimes as part of an online network of nihilistic violent extremists who engage in criminal conduct. The group targets children for sexual exploitation as a way to accelerate the downfall of U.S. society. The U.S. Attorney's Office says members of 764 work together toward hoping to destroy civilized society through the corruption and exploitation of vulnerable populations, including minors. ABC 7 Assault suspect arrested for allegedly targeting 86-year-old woman in L.A. An assault suspect was arrested for allegedly targeting an 86-year-old woman in Los Angeles. The suspect was identified as Marcus Penn, 39, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. On April 30, officers responded to a possible burglary suspect seen on the 100 block of Ocean Front Walk at 8:30 a.m. The caller who reported the incident said they saw Penn entering a residential building with the elderly woman. Police arrived at the building and found Penn inside the victim’s home. During the investigation, police said they discovered evidence that suggested Penn intended to assault the woman. He was arrested for assault with the intent to commit a felony during a burglary. He is being held on $2.05 million bail. Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call LAPD’s Operation West Bureau detectives at 213-473-0447. The public can also call the LAPD at 1-877-527-3247. KTLA 5 With over 2 dozen animal cruelty cases in recent weeks, LA authorities pledge ‘zero tolerance' Los Angeles authorities Tuesday promised to fully investigate and prosecute animal abusers after more than 25 animal cruelty cases were filed in LA County over the past six weeks. Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman, along with LA County Sheriff Robert Luna as well as officials from the Los Angeles and Long Beach Police Departments, said they were committed to holding abusers accountable while protecting animals during a news conference, saying cruelty against animals is a “red flag.” “It's often a gateway indicator that if you can do this type of cruelty to an animal, the next step is you're going to do this type of cruelty to humans,” Hochman said. Among the charged is 28-year-old Esteban Garcia, who is accused of dropping a 5-year-old Bulldog named Adriana on the head before kicking her and throwing her into a stack of tires in the Florence neighborhood of South LA. Surveillance video footage from April 7 showed that Garcia left the dog, who also had illegal drugs in her system, die. Fortunately, Adriana was rescued, and she’s now recovering under the care of a foster family. Garcia could face up to three years in county jail, Hochman said. NBC 4 $20,000 reward offered in drive-by shooting deaths of mother and daughter in Compton A $20,000 reward in the investigation into the shooting deaths of a woman and her daughter at a Compton intersection was offered Tuesday by Los Angeles County officials. The Board of Supervisors approved the reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction in the killings of a 45-year-old La'von Hall and her 22-year-old daughter Ma'Laysia Martin in an April 1 drive-by shooting. The two women were waiting at at stoplight when someone in another vehicle opened fire at about 7 p.m. at the intersection of Caldwell Street and Central Avenue. The shooter's vehicle left the scene southbound on Central Avenue. Hall was found in the street west of the intersection. Her daughter was found in their car's passenger seat. Both women died at the scene. Days after the shootings, sheriff's department investigators identified Hall's 41-year-old ex-boyfriend Donte Brown as a suspect in the killings. Brown remains at large. Brown is known to frequent the Compton and Long Beach areas and should be considered armed and dangerous. Detectives have said they believe there are witnesses to the killings who may have information for investigators. NBC 4 Catalytic converter theft ring in California raked in $38M, prosecutors say A 33-year-old man was sentenced to 12 years in prison for his role in a family-run catalytic converter theft ring that brought in more than $38 million, federal officials announced this week. In a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, prosecutors said 33-year-old Tou Sue Vang, a resident of Sacramento, along with his brother Andrew Vang and his mother Monica Moua, bought stolen catalytic converters from thieves and transported them across state lines to a buyer in New Jersey. “Catalytic converter theft has become prevalent across the nation because of their value, relative ease to steal, and their lack of identifying markings,” the release noted. “Thieves steal catalytic converters from vehicles on the street for the precious metals they contain.” In some cases, the precious metals inside the parts are more valuable per ounce than gold, prosecutors added, and the black-market rate for certain catalytic converters out of California can be more than $1,000 each. KTLA 5 Man throws live grenade at California officers during pursuit A police pursuit through the streets of Oakland and Berkeley turned into a potentially deadly encounter when a suspected car thief allegedly threw a live grenade at officers in an attempt to evade capture, the New York Post reported. The suspect is accused of launching the explosive during a slow-speed pursuit that began around 3:30 p.m. on May 2 when California Highway Patrol officers attempted to pull him over in a stolen vehicle. The suspect refused to stop, prompting a pursuit that continued into neighboring Berkeley. At one point during the pursuit, the suspect reportedly tossed a bag from the driver’s side window. A CHP officer not involved in the immediate pursuit inspected the bag and discovered what appeared to be a grenade with its safety pin partially removed. The discovery led to immediate coordination with the Berkeley Police Department and prompted evacuation orders for nearby residents. The University of California, Berkeley Explosive Ordnance Disposal team responded, safely secured the device and cleared the area by 5 p.m. The pursuit continued until the suspect abandoned the stolen car and fled on foot, ultimately being cornered and arrested on a dead-end street. The UCPD bomb team searched the abandoned vehicle and confirmed there were no additional explosives. PoliceOne 12-year-old migrant with Tren de Aragua ties caught in Times Square attack on NYPD cops A 12-year-old migrant boy with Tren de Aragua ties was arrested in a Times Square attack on a pair of NYPD police officers who were protecting two other kids from being robbed, police sources said Monday. The same boy made headlines last year when he was arrested at age 11 in connection with a string of Central Park robberies in which a number of people had their cellphones stolen, police sources said. The 12-year-old has ties to Diablos de la 42, or Devils of 42nd Street , an offshoot of Tren de Aragua , according to police sources. In the Times Square episode, the two officers saw a group trying to rob two kids at W. 42nd St. and Eighth Ave about 7:35 p.m. Friday , and moved in to break it up. The group then turned on them, leaving the cops with minor injuries. Two in the crowd threw items at the officers, including what appear to be a large rubber ball, video posted on X by Viral News NYC shows. An open-air boxing match in which Rolando Romero defeated Ryan Garcia had concluded in Times Square when the mayhem broke out. Four suspects were nabbed, including the boy, who police sources said runs with a local offshoot of Tren de Aragua , the notorious Venezuelan gang that has come under renewed fire amid President Donald Trump’s sweeping deportation agenda. New York Daily News Public Safety News Fire erupts in attic of Fairfax neighborhood tattoo studio Firefighters were called to battle a blaze that erupted overnight in the attic of a tattoo shop in Los Angeles’ Fairfax neighborhood. The blaze was reported around 1:15 a.m. in a row of one-story commercial businesses on the 600 block of Poinsettia Place. Crews arrived at the nearly 100-year-old structure to find a fire burning in the attic space above a tattoo studio, the Los Angeles Fire Department stated in a news release. It took 49 minutes for firefighters to knock down the “stubborn flames” inside the structure built in 1932. There were no immediate reports of injury. The cause of the fire remains under investigation. KTLA 5 Deadly illness spreading rapidly on the West Coast; 590 cases in California It’s not just measles making a fierce comeback in 2025. Another disease that’s especially dangerous to young children, known as pertussis or whooping cough, is spreading nearly twice as fast as it was last year. As of April 26, the latest data available from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 9,047 cases have been identified in U.S. residents in 2025. That’s nearly twice as many as there were at this time last year, when about 4,700 cases had been identified. Whooping cough tends to peak in the spring and fall. It’s usually spread through respiratory droplets in the air when people with pertussis cough, sneeze or breathe close to others. The symptoms are similar to a cold, but the cough becomes increasingly severe with a distinctive sound — a “whoop” as the person tries to take in air. The illness is most dangerous for infants too young to get the vaccine. Experts say the outbreaks of vaccine-preventable illnesses, like measles and whooping cough, could be indicative of changing attitudes toward vaccines. KTLA 5 Local Government News LA Council Committee Advances Minimum Wage Increase for Tourism Workers A City Council committee Tuesday advanced a proposal that would increase the minimum wage for hotel and airport workers, with the goal of providing them $30 an hour by 2028. The Economic Development and Jobs Committee voted 3-1 in favor of the proposal with a few changes. Councilwoman Traci Park, whose 11th District includes Los Angeles International Airport, opposed the wage increase, while Councilman Adrian Nazarian was absent during the vote. The issue will go before the full City Council at a later date. “Now is the right time to do the right thing for workers,” Councilman Hugo Soto-Martinez said in support of the proposal. But Park expressed concerns about potential harms that could befall hotels and airport concessionaires. “We are moving forward a 50% increase in wages and health care costs while our entire tourism economy is underwater, and that is directly impacting our sales taxes, our business taxes and our TOT (hotel) taxes and everything else that is impacting our city’s budget,” Park said. 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. Listen To Our Podcast Los Angeles Police Protective League | 1308 W 8th St | Los Angeles, CA 90017 US Unsubscribe | Our Privacy Policy | Constant Contact Data Notice