Police Blotter: Handheld Hostage and Stupid Stunts

To text a thief:
On June 28, a man reported his cell phone stolen from one of the north-facing benches on the Manhattan Beach Pier. Having left it behind, when he returned five minutes later, the phone was missing. The man sent several text messages to his phone from another cell phone. In response, he received a text asking for a ransom in exchange for the phone. The man tried to set up a meeting place to retrieve his phone, but he did not receive any more responses. Police called the victim's phone but no one answered.

Public enemy cops to stupidity:
Police responded on June 28 to a theft at Fry's Electronics along Sepulveda Bouleveard. A Fry's security guard reported seeing a man take software and a "Public Enemies" Blu-ray movie, remove the packaging and hide both items in his clothing. His actions were also caught on the store's surveillance video. The man was detained outside of the store. He waived his right to remain silent and told police, "This was stupid, I should not have taken those things." He said he had enough cash to pay for the stolen items. Police found at least $110 in his wallet.

Stolen iPhone no cause for alarm:
On June 30, police responded to a theft of an iPhone on display at the Apple Store on 3200 Sepulveda Boulevard. The store manager told police that while he was walking around the store, he saw one of the display iPhones missing from its place.

The manager reviewed the video surveillance system and watched a man detach the phone from its security wire and walk out of the store at 6:30 p.m. The suspect did not appear to use any tools. The manager said that an alarm is supposed to sound when the security wire is detached, but in this case, it failed to go off.

The manager noticed in the security video that a second suspect acted as a lookout, telling the first suspect when employees were walking by. The first suspect walked out of the store with the phone, and his accomplice followed a minute later. Police requested a copy of the surveillance tape and asked the manager to report the phone's serial number.

Thief plans teddy bear shoot?
A man reported on July 2 that he noticed two unauthorized withdrawals from his Wells Fargo checking account. He contacted the bank, which notified him that on June 22 two online purchases were made on his Visa debit card, which he had in his possession. The first was a $14 purchase from a teddy bear company. The second was for a $1,233 Canon camera.

Bike, electronic thefts:

June 23: Two suspects were detained for shoplifting at Fry's Electronics, and later booked by police.

June 29: A white Schwinn cruiser was stolen from the 700 block of Center Place.

June 30: A cell phone dock and sunglasses were stolen from a car at 1200 Rosecrans Avenue. The driver's door was damaged, appearing as if someone had jammed a hard object into the lock to break it.

July 2: Two bikes were stolen—one from a parking lot near 3600 Sepulveda Boulevard and the other from the bike rack behind Trader Joe's at 1800 Rosecrans Avenue.