Email from Los Angeles Police Protective League Daily News & Updates   Law Enforcement News Mayor Karen Bass wants LAPD budget increase for more officers LA mayor Karen Bass is asking the city council to give millions of dollars to the Los Angeles Police Department to ramp up hiring. With the FIFA World Cup next year and the LA Olympics in 2028, Bass says more men and women in uniform are needed now, and without this money, hiring would freeze in January. In a letter sent to city council, the mayor wrote that “The second largest city in the United States cannot have an effective police department with 8,300 officers – levels not seen since 1995.” She says that if the city council allocates $4.4 million dollars for LAPD, they’ll be able to hire 410 more police officers for this fiscal year ending in June 2026. Her argument is that if the hiring of new officers stops in just a matter of weeks, that would mean no new cadets here at the academy in January. More money spent on overtime for existing officers and strain on officers’ physical and mental health with longer shifts and more responsibility. Mayor Bass signed the budget for this fiscal year in June where the budget reduced LAPD’s hiring plans from 400 to 250 officers. But, the budget promised to consider hiring more officers if the city figured out how to fund it. The mayor’s letter didn’t say where the money would come from. NBC4 has reached out to all 15 city council members and is waiting for more information. NBC 4 LAPD Play Santa’s Helpers, Hand Out Gift Cards to Kids at South LA Target LAPD officials will play Santa Claus and elves and distribute gift cards to local kids Thursday at a Target store in South Los Angeles as part of what’s called the Heroes & Helpers program. The Christmas giving effort is sponsored by Target, other businesses, charity organizations and first responders. About 60 children are expected to be on hand as an LAPD commander and captain are joined at the Target store at 3535 S. La Cienega Blvd. by personnel from the LAPD’s Southwest Station and representatives from Felix Chevrolet and Honda of Downtown Los Angeles for the 6 a.m. event. The Heroes & Helpers program matches local first responders with a nonprofit organization in their neighborhood, and together they apply for a grant from Target, according to the LAPD. “Target approved $2,000 to host a holiday shopping event with children living in under-resourced areas,” according to an LAPD statement announcing the giveaway. Donations from Honda of Downtown Los Angeles and Felix Chevrolet allowed for more kids to participate in this year’s event in South L.A., police said. MyNewsLA Celeste Rivas case: LAPD chief stays mum on D4vd's alleged role in teen's death investigation What happened to Celeste Rivas Hernandez? The investigation continues months after the 14-year-old’s remains were found in the trunk of a Tesla registered to D4vd at a tow yard in Hollywood. No arrests have been made, and authorities have not confirmed if D4vd, born David Anthony Burke, has been identified as a suspect. Late last month, the Los Angeles Times reported that a grand jury will hear evidence related to the case. On Tuesday, a music executive reportedly testified, saying he didn’t feel it was his job to contact officials. On Wednesday, Los Angeles Police Department Chief Jim McDonnell appeared on Good Day LA and declined to discuss details of the case, saying that doing so would jeopardize the investigation. When asked if D4vd is a suspect, McDonnell did not offer a response and explained the need to keep details of the case confidential for now. "That’s a case I won’t talk about at this time because it’s an ongoing case. To do so would potentially jeopardize the case. There was some talk too about our request to keep the information confidential that the coroner was looking to release, and our goal there is not to impede transparency," he said. FOX 11 Man found unresponsive after South Los Angeles hit-and-run A man was found unresponsive after a hit-and-run collision in South Los Angeles early Wednesday, though police later confirmed he survived the impact, authorities said. LAPD officers responded around 5:10 a.m. to reports of a pedestrian hit by a vehicle in the area of Florence Avenue near Normandie Avenue in the Vermont-Slauson neighborhood. When officers arrived, they located a victim, only described as an adult male, down in the roadway. He was not conscious and not breathing before firefighters arrived, according to police. The victim was transported to a local hospital, where officials determined he was still alive. His condition was not immediately released. The driver who struck him did not remain at the scene, police say, and investigators have not released any description of the suspect or vehicle involved. Anyone with information is urged to contact the LAPD. KTLA 5 19-year-old severely injured by hit-and-run driver in Panorama City, police say Los Angeles police are investigating a hit-and-run crash that left a 19-year-old with severe injuries in Panorama City on Tuesday night. The crash happened just before 8 p.m. near Van Nuys Boulevard and Tupper Street, according to a news release from the Los Angeles Police Department. Officers arrived to find that a white Toyota sedan was driving south when it collided with the 19-year-old man as he crossed Van Nuys in a marked crosswalk. "The driver of the Toyota failed to stop, identify themselves, or render aid as required by law," police said. The man was taken to a nearby hospital in critical condition. He has not yet been identified pending notification of next of kin, according to police. A standing reward of up to $25,000 has been offered for anyone with information that leads to the suspect's identification, arrest and conviction through the Los Angeles Administrative Code's Hit-and-Run Reward Program Trust Fund. Anyone who knows more is asked to contact LAPD investigators at (818) 644-8255 or (818) 644-8116. CBS 2 Thieves tunnel into Woodland Hills sports memorabilia shop, steal nearly $30,000 of merchandise Nearly $30,000 of merchandise was stolen from a Woodland Hills sports memorabilia shop early Thursday morning after thieves tunneled their way in after breaking into a neighboring Mendocino Farms restaurant. According to the Los Angeles Police Department, three to four suspects smashed the front glass door of the restaurant in the 23300 block of Mulholland Drive. They then tunneled through the wall to gain access to the Cards & Coffee trading cards shop. The shop owner said this is the second time thieves have broken into his store, which has security bars covering the glass storefront. Glass cases inside the sports memorabilia store were smashed, and the owner said one of the thieves cut themselves as blood was spotted inside. The police investigation is ongoing, and the store owner said surveillance cameras in the shop may have captured the suspects in action. CBS 2 Woman in Los Angeles found man inside Waymo trunk before ride Police are looking into how a man ended up inside the trunk of a driverless Waymo in the Westlake District, surprising a mom and daughter. The incident was captured in a TikTok video and shows the driverless Waymo pull up to the curb when the door opens and a man is already inside, tucked behind the back seat in the trunk area. The woman quickly pulls her daughter away, keeps recording and later says she canceled the ride and called 911. Los Angeles Police Department officers are then seen detaining the man on the sidewalk. Waymo says it is committed to keeping riders safe and earning the community's trust, calling this experience "unacceptable" and saying it is making changes to prevent anything like it from happening again. The company told CBS LA its rider support team checked in with the rider during and after the incident, that it aims to provide a safe and inclusive experience for all, and that it already has ways to address situations like this, but is actively improving them. CBS 2 Search for 3 people on ‘pocket bikes' accused of assaulting CHP officers Authorities Wednesday looked for three people who they said threw large rocks at California Highway Patrol officers along the southbound 101 Freeway in Los Angeles during anti-immigration enforcement protests in June. The alleged assault happened on June 8 when some of the demonstrations led to violent altercations between demonstrators and police. Three people, whom the LA County Sheriff's Department are looking for, were part of a larger group of young men, riding "pocket bikes." The sheriff's department added the group arrived in the area and began "committing assaults and vandalisms." One of the suspects was older than the other two, investigators said, while wearing a hooded sweatshirt with the logo of a "Small Engine Cams" company. His pocket bike appeared to have an extended rear exhaust pipe. Two other suspects were seen wearing dark clothing and helmets with bright color markings. During the June protests, LA County Sheriff Robert Luna had said deputies were attacked with “rocks, Molotov cocktails and ‘high-grade pyrotechnics," injuring about a dozen deputies. NBC 4 Ukranian national charged in LA with computer hacking in support of Russia A Ukrainian woman is facing federal charges in Los Angeles alleging she took part in Russian state-sponsored computer breaches on U.S. companies, including a cyberattack on a Vernon meat processor that purportedly caused the spoilage of more than 2,000 pounds of meat and triggered an ammonia leak, according to court papers unsealed Wednesday. Victoria Eduardovna Dubranova, 33 -- also known as “Vika,” “Tory” and “SovaSonya” -- was extradited to the United States earlier this year to face charges including tampering with public water systems, damaging protected computers, aggravated identity theft and conspiracy, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. In one of two indictments unsealed Tuesday in Los Angeles federal court, prosecutors allege Dubranova and unnamed co-conspirators tampered with water system pumps and industrial equipment, causing damage to utilities and organizations providing drinking water in the U.S. The companies were not named in court papers. “The defendant's illegal actions to tamper with the nation's public water systems put communities and the nation's drinking water resources at risk,” Craig Pritzlaff, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's acting assistant administrator, said in a statement. NBC 4 California man suspected of murder after woman found dead in Colorado A 47-year-old Southern California man has been arrested on suspicion of second-degree murder in connection with the death of a woman whose body was found in Colorado last week, authorities said. The victim was discovered Friday morning in southern Pueblo County, prompting an investigation by the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office. Detectives later obtained a warrant for second-degree murder against Edgar Ramos-Garcia of South Gate, California. He was booked into the Pueblo County Jail. Officials have not released details about the woman’s death or how Ramos-Garcia is connected to the case. The victim’s identity is being withheld until “the appropriate time,” the Sheriff’s Office said. Under Colorado law, second-degree murder typically means a person knowingly causes the death of another without premeditation. The Sheriff’s Office said the investigation remains active. KTLA 5 Public Safety News Electric school bus catches fire in Los Angeles, driver hospitalized An electric school bus burst into flames in Los Angeles on Wednesday morning, prompting a massive emergency response and shutting down a stretch of the 210 Freeway in Sylmar, authorities said. The fire was reported around 9:20 a.m. at 11460 W. Foothill Blvd., directly under the 210 Freeway overpass in the San Fernando Valley, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. Sky5 was over the scene as heavy flames and thick black smoke poured from the fully involved bus. No children were on board at the time of the fire, officials said. The driver, whose age and gender have not been released, was transported to a local hospital for minor smoke inhalation. Because the bus is powered by lithium-ion batteries, LAFD said its HazMat units were called in to monitor air quality and water runoff. Officials told KTLA that overhaul operations — the process of ensuring the fire is fully extinguished and the battery system is stabilized — could take several hours. KTLA 5 Fire erupts in two-story residence in South-Central L.A. Crews with the Los Angeles Fire Department were battling a structure fire at a vacant two-story home in Historic South-Central L.A. Wednesday night. Sky5 was leaving the scene of a structure fire in a five-story West L.A. apartment complex in the 1800 block of Westwood when aerial footage captured heavy flames showing from a roof in the 2500 block of South Main Street approximately 13 miles away. L.A. fire officials said the single-family dwelling, which has been the site of previous fires, was showing heavy flames coming from the roof, prompting crews to take a defensive approach to the blaze, entirely avoiding the inside of the structure. Some 60 firefighters were able to get the fire under control in about 20 minutes and prevent any nearby structures from catching fire. Preliminary reports suggested that no one was inside the structure, and no injuries were reported. The cause of the blaze remains under investigation. KTLA 5 About the LAPPL: Formed in 1923, the Los Angeles Police Protective League (LAPPL) represents more than 8,700 dedicated and professional sworn members of the Los Angeles Police Department. 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