Crime Report: Copper pipes stolen from Trader Joe’s

La Cañada Flintridge

Sept. 12

Burglary, residential: 5200 block of Pizzo Ranch Road. A man returned home at 12:10 p.m. after running errands to find a man in his 20s, wearing a red sweatshirt with a yellow emblem and dark pants walking through his backyard. When he opened his door and asked, “Who are you?” the suspect replied, “Nobody,” and continued walking around the corner of the house. He then leapt over a locked gate and disappeared from view. The victim walked through his house and noticed a living room window had been smashed, though nothing appeared to have been taken. He called the police. Responding officers noticed dirty shoe prints on the carpet inside and outside the home. No fingerprints were recovered, and no witnesses could be located.

Petty theft: 4200 block of Beulah Drive. Shortly after midnight, a man took a taxi home from Montrose, stopping once for fast food. When he came home and emptied his pockets, he noticed he’d left his wallet, containing a permanent residency card and a company credit card, in the storage compartment of the taxi’s front passenger door. He called the company, but could not reach the driver, so decided to resume the search in the morning. The next day, he called his credit card company to report a theft and was told the card had been used to purchase items at a gas station in Barstow. The victim was able to obtain the taxi driver’s name and phone number, and provided a physical description to deputies. When he called the driver, the driver said he never saw a wallet but had taxied several other people after dropping off the victim.

Sept. 13

Vandalism, business: 400 block of Foothill Boulevard. An employee of Trader Joe’s called deputies after he discovered from a co-worker that copper pipes connected to the store’s refrigeration unit had been stolen, causing goods to thaw. The incident occurred between 10 p.m. the night before and 4 a.m. that day. When the informant went on the roof, he saw bent piping and pieces of copper piping strewn about. He told officers this is not the first time such an incident has happened there. Another employee at the store reported that a temperature alarm was activated at around 6:40 a.m.

Sept. 15

Vandalism, vehicle: 4900 block of Crown Avenue. A woman told police that sometime between 11:30 p.m. the night before and 8 a.m. that day, someone vandalized her 2007 Toyota Prius with eggs during the night, causing damage to her car doors. The victim parked her car on the street in front of her house the night before. When she returned, she saw dry eggs smeared across the driver’s side door. The woman tried to remove the residue, but it did not come off entirely.

Burglary, residential: 4900 block of Del Monte Road. A woman left home for work at 7:45 a.m. When she returned at 6:30 p.m. she noticed a rear door in the kitchen was ajar and multiple rooms had been ransacked. U.S. currency and 100 Euros had been taken from a desk, and two wallets were stolen from the den. The victim did not know if other items had been taken. The kitchen door was the point of entry and exit, police surmised. The victim could not recall if she had locked the door before leaving. No traceable fingerprints were found at the scene.

La Crescenta/Montrose

Sept. 11

Petty theft, unlocked vehicle: 2900 block of Highridge Road. A man parked his 2013 Honda Civic on the street in front of his house at 6:30 p.m. the evening before, leaving the windows rolled down about 2 inches to let heat escape. When he returned at 7:45 the next morning, he saw his car had been ransacked and that his GPS device and a stash of quarters were missing. No damage was done to the vehicle, and no witnesses could be located.

Sept. 12

Petty theft: 2900 block of Community Avenue. At 11:15 a.m. Crescenta Valley High School student told a school resource officer that someone stole his cellphone while it was charging at an electrical outlet during his third-period English class. He plugged it in at the beginning of class and went to his seat about 10 feet away. When he returned at the end of class, he saw the charging cord still plugged in and the phone missing. No witnesses could be located.

Sept. 13

Petty theft, unlocked vehicle: 4600 block of La Crescenta Avenue. A man reported that sometime between 11 p.m. the night before and 7:30 a.m. that day, someone stole a briefcase and change from his unlocked 2014 Honda Odyssey as it was parked in front of his residence. He said he left his car on Friday night, thinking it had an automatic locking function. When he returned to the car, it was unlocked, and the victim saw his glove box had been opened and a briefcase containing a Bible was missing. Change had also been taken from the vehicle.

Sept. 15

Burglary, residential: 3000 block of Orange Avenue. A woman left her home around noon to run errands, securing all doors and windows before she left. When she returned around 2:30 p.m. and entered her home, she noticed it had been ransacked. The victim noticed an open rear window with the screen removed and set outside. Officers noticed pry marks on the window frame, and determined that to be the point of entry and exit. Several electronic items, including an Xbox gaming console and several games, two iPads and an iPhone were stolen, in addition to two necklaces. DNA and fingerprint tests were ordered, but a search for witnesses turned up nothing.