Briefly In Public Safety

Cash reported stolen from bar safe

Laguna Beach police are investigating a theft from a safe in an Ocean Avenue bar/restaurant, said Lt. Jason Kravetz.

The theft occurred Feb. 1 and was discovered Feb. 3.

Police were told that a male suspect entered the rear door of the business and walked to the office area where he found the safe and allegedly removed more than $600 in cash, Kravetz said. After taking the cash, he fled through the rear door.

Surveillance tape reveals apparent theft

A $139 cell-phone earpiece was reported stolen at 1:20 p.m. Feb. 5 after the owner of a gas station in the 100 block of North Coast Highway was reviewing store video in order to find a recent customer purchase, Kravetz said.

On tape, the owner saw a male and female couple allegedly steal the item off a display shelf when the clerk wasn’t looking. The male was shown taking the earpiece and fleeing the store in a Mercedes Benz.

“The entire theft is caught on video, and the detectives will be following up on the incident,” Kravetz said.

Woman gets money back in Canadian scam

A Laguna Beach woman reported to police at 5:50 p.m. Feb. 5 that she had been duped into sending $4,000 to a man in Canada claiming to be her grandson, according to police records.

The money was sent via Western Union. She discovered the fraud when Western Union notified her that the transaction was being canceled and her money returned.

Laguna Beach police typically hand over a case like this to the FBI because it involves criminal activity that crosses state and international boundaries, Kravetz said.

Teen arrested on drunk driving warrant

An Alamo teenager was arrested on forgery and drunk driving warrants in Northern California after she left a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center in Laguna Beach, Kravetz said.

Jordan Jeha, 18, was arrested at 7:28 p.m. Saturday in the 1300 block of South Coast Highway after police were informed that she was at the location.

Wallet reported stolen from gallery clerk

A woman’s wallet was reported stolen from her purse under a desk where she worked at a gallery in the 300 block of Glenneyre Street at 8:49 p.m. Sunday, Kravetz said.

The victim said two men came into the business and, while one of the men was distracting her, the other man went behind a desk and allegedly removed the victim’s wallet from her purse. The loss was reported at $90. The gallery had video surveillance, which detectives will use to attempt to identify the suspects, Kravetz said.

Fraud suspected in school fundraising

A Laguna Beach woman in the 30000 block of Scenic Drive reported to police that a magazine subscription company that she had bought subscriptions from to benefit the Laguna Beach High School baseball team turned out to have no affiliation with the school, Kravetz said.

The victim reported a possible fraud at 12:46 p.m. Monday, stating that a young man came to her door and claimed to be from the high school baseball team and was selling magazine subscriptions. She agreed to buy a subscription and wrote a check for $51. After he left, she researched the company she issued the check to and learned they had no affiliation with the high school. By the time this was learned, her check had been cashed.

Handyman suspected of theft and fraud

Laguna Beach police are seeking a suspect in a theft and check fraud case involving a man who hired a handyman to do some work at his Chiquita Street home in January, Kravetz said. When the work was completed, the victim noticed that a watch and sunglasses were missing, totaling $2,340. On Tuesday, the man came into the station to file a report after learning that a someone went to a check cashing business in Los Angeles County and tried to cash one of his checks. The check cashing business did not accept the check, but the victim learned that one of his personal checks was missing.