From the Blotter: Suspicious Tools, Behavior Lead to Arrests

Responding to a rash of third-row seat thefts from SUVs, Manhattan Beach Police officers arrested two men this month on suspicion of burglary and possession of tools "used to gain or force entry into a vehicle."

Working undercover at the Manhattan Village Mall on April 6, an officer followed two men in a white Chevrolet Tahoe truck as they drove through the parking lots of both the mall and the nearby Target shopping center around 5 p.m. The driver repeatedly parked the truck, while the passenger exited and "began walking in between parked vehicles and looking into them," according to a police report.

The undercover officer did not witness any theft occur, but in following the truck from Target to the mall parking lot he reported seeing the driver commit two moving violations. Tailing the truck back onto the street, the officer then radioed for a marked patrol car to stop the truck's driver along Rosecrans Avenue.

Police were allegedly given false names by the driver and passenger, who were later identified as Eduardo Quiroz and Edgar Carbajal through fingerprint records. Officers retrieved from the truck a bag of wrenches, screwdrivers, pliers and other small tools—"placed for quick access," according to the report—along with a pair of nylon gloves and three kitchen rags.

"Gloves, tools within arms reach, and rags are items commonly used in the commission of burglary," read the report. "Rags are used to protect the burglar from broken glass."

The truck's passenger also had a wrench in his front pants pocket. When asked about it, the suspect told police that he is an electrician and "doesn't like tool belts."

The truck's driver told police his purpose in going to Target was to drop off his girlfriend. The arresting officer replied that he had been following the truck since entering the store's parking lot and never saw a female exit the truck. "He told me that I must have just missed her," the officer stated in the report.

The officer said the names the suspects gave him both belong to real individuals. Separate counts of false impersonation were added to the suspects' booking charges. Police attempted to contact the impersonated men, but "their contact information was not available," said the report.