‘Indiana Jones’ mystery is solved

L.A. County sheriff’s detectives took a page from one of Indiana Jones’ adventures while solving the case of the missing laptops.

Detectives were called to Universal Studios last week when the computers as well as hundreds of photos from director Steven Spielberg’s fourth installment of the “Indiana Jones” series went missing from a production office.

Then on Tuesday, someone e-mailed several entertainment gossip websites saying he or she had images from the upcoming movie and was willing to sell them. Officials at Paramount Pictures, which is expected to release the movie next year, learned about the e-mails and called law enforcement officials, according to Sheriff’s Department spokesman Steve Whitmore.

Detectives decided to set a trap for the suspect. They e-mailed the suspect, saying they were interested in purchasing the photos, and set up a meeting at the Standard Hotel in West Hollywood for Tuesday afternoon, according to a law enforcement source.

When a man arrived, undercover detectives began negotiating for the photos before identifying themselves and arresting the man on suspicion of receiving stolen property, Whitmore said. Roderick Davis, 37, of Cerritos also was being held on suspicion of violating his parole, Whitmore said.

The highly anticipated “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” which comes 19 years after the third installment in the series, stars Harrison Ford, Shia LaBeouf and Cate Blanchett.

andrew.blankstein @latimes.com

richard.winton@latimes.com