Church volunteer, a ‘career criminal,’ arrested for allegedly stealing money from donation box
Undercover officers this week arrested a 48-year-old probationer accused of fishing money out of a donation box at a Glendale church where he volunteered, police said.
Members of Holy Family Church caught on to the alleged theft after counting less money in the box over the last few months than usual, while a manager noticed a sticky substance on the box, said Glendale Police Sgt. Robert William.
They turned for answers to their surveillance footage, which revealed that a new volunteer stole money from the box on “numerous” occasions, William said.
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On Wednesday, a day after watching the footage, Glendale police went undercover at the church, where they saw the man — identified as Armando Vasquez, of Los Angeles — sweeping the floor before entering the chapel. There, he reportedly pulled out his fishing tools, including double-sided tape, and stole from the box, William said.
While arresting Vasquez, police found him in possession of marked money from the donation box, as well as other valuables belonging to the church.
Vasquez was charged on Thursday with two counts of grand theft and one count of providing a false name to police, William said.
Investigators described Vasquez as a “career criminal” with 11 theft-related convictions, who was released from prison under AB 109, the state’s criminal realignment law.
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Alene Tchekmedyian, alene.tchekmedyian@latimes.com
Twitter: @atchek
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