Man charged with using bolt cutters to steal three bicycles

A 37-year-old Glendale resident was charged Wednesday with using bolt cutters to steal at least three high-end bicycles from residential garages, police said.

Ivan Saeedkhanian, who was convicted in 2005 for burglary, faces two felony counts of first-degree residential burglary in connection with stealing the bicycles, according to a Los Angeles County Superior Court criminal complaint.

Saeedkhanian, who resides at the YMCA of Glendale living facility, was arrested Friday after detectives obtained a warrant to search his apartment and found two stolen Giant and Specialized bicycles in the living room, according to Glendale police reports. One of the bikes was worth $1,000, police said.

“Obviously, he has his eyes on very expensive bikes,” Glendale Police Sgt. Tom Lorenz said.

Saeedkhanian was tied to the alleged bicycle thefts after his fingerprints matched prints left on plastic packaging for a bolt cutter found Sept. 1 in an underground parking garage on the 300 block of Maryland Avenue, according to police reports.

He allegedly entered the apartment building’s garage through broken gate and used bolt cutters to cut the cable lock and steal a bicycle, according to police.

The following day, a woman reported that her husband’s 2008 Specialized Rockhopper bicycle was stolen from their apartment building’s parking garage on the 200 block of North Louise Street, a block away from the first theft.

The bicycle was secured with a cable, which police said was cut.

The woman also noticed that another cable lock had been cut and a neighbor’s bicycle was stolen, according to reports.

During a search of Saeedkhanian’s apartment, detectives found a bolt cutter, which was covered with a pillow case inside a closet, according to police reports.

Saeedkhanian reportedly told police that he found the bolt cutter in a trash can at the YMCA.

The YMCA housing facility offers low-income apartments for rent nightly and weekly.

The names of all potential clients are run through the Megan’s Law database of registered sex offenders before they are allowed to rent a room at the housing facility, said George Saikali, YMCA chief executive officer.

“From our side, the best we can do is check; and we did, and nothing showed up,” he said of Saeedkhanian.

Saeedkhanian denied stealing the bicycles and told officers the bikes found in his apartment belonged to him, although police said he couldn’t recall how he had acquired them. They said the bikes’ decals had been altered and covered with stickers.

Lorenz said detectives believe Saeedkhanian planned to sell the bikes.