Crime Report

Friday, July 8Just after midnight, two adjacent businesses were burglarized in the 11500 block of Paramount Blvd. Officers discovered that bars covering the rear windows of the businesses had had been cut. The unknown suspect(s) had fled the area prior to police arriving on scene. At 12:30 p.m., three suspects swindled a 49-year-old female victim from Downey out of several thousand dollars by involving her in a confidence game. The victim was first approached in the Downey Landing parking lot and was led to believe that by fronting money for a citizen of a foreign country, she would help him to obtain substantial lottery winnings. The complex scheme lasted throughout the afternoon and into surrounding cities before the suspects escaped with the victim's money. At 4:15 p.m., police arrested a 20-year-old male Downey resident for possession of a loaded firearm. Police received a report of the man with a handgun in his pocket in the 11700 block of Lakewood Blvd. The man ran from police and disposed of the gun under a car before being captured. Officers recovered the weapon. At about 5:30 p.m., a robbery occurred in the parking lot of the Bank of America at 10010 Paramount Blvd. The victim, a 60-year-old male from Montrose, was walking toward the bank when a male in his late teens grabbed the personal bag he was carrying and ran toward a getaway car. A 21-year-old male associate of the victim saw what had happened and chased the suspect to the awaiting vehicle, which was occupied by another male and female. A short physical struggle ensued and the 21-year-old was able to recover the bag as the suspect vehicle drove away. Witnesses obtained a license plate number and detectives are investigating the crime. Information provided by Downey Police Department.

********** Published: July 14, 2011 - Volume 10 - Issue 13