SANTA MONICA CRIME WATCH

A Day at the Beach Ends with Kidnapping Charges for One Man

Santa Monica Police say officers were called to St. John's Hospital Emergency Room, 2121 Santa Monica Boulevard on June 21 at approximately 11:38 p.m. They say they were told a young child was refusing to leave with the suspect, Dale Lucerne of Grand Junction, Colorado and a woman. Authorities say the child and the woman were both crying when the officers found them. They say the woman told officers that while she was at the beach earlier in the day with the child and the suspect, she injured her foot requiring a trip to the emergency room and that Lucerne drove her and the child to the hospital. Authorities say Lucerne was supposed to wait outside, but after a few hours, the woman and the child could not find him, so they walked to the CVS Pharmacy in the 2500 block of Santa Monica Boulevard to fill a prescription. They say approximately ten minutes after they left a text message for Lucerne he arrived in the parking lot of the CVS. Authorities say once both were seated in the car, Lucerne started screaming at them as he drove back toward the emergency room. Lawmen report the woman asked him to stop several times so that she and the child could get out of the car. They say when he drove by the entrance to the emergency room, Lucerne slammed on the brakes and the girl, who was not in her seatbelt, hit the seat in front of her and started crying. Officers say when the woman tried to get out of the car, Lucerne grabbed her hair, then grabbed her neck and squeezed. They say she was finally able to break from his grasp and flee the car with the child. Lucerne was arrested for kidnapping and child endangerment.

Car Vandalism Suspect Caught

Santa Monica Police say a patrol officer responded to an open carport near the intersection of 4th Street and Bay Street regarding a recent vandalism to a car. They say the incident happened on June 19 at approximately 10:45 p.m. Authorities report the caller told the responding officer that he saw a suspect wearing a dark hoodie and carrying a white umbrella, break the rear window of a green Volkswagen Beetle before running northbound on 4th Street, then west on Pico Boulevard. Authorities say a sergeant, also responding to the call, detained the subject, Anthony Elby of Marina Del Rey in the 1900 block of Alley 2. They say Elby was arrested for vandalism as well as an outstanding warrant. He received a 36500-dollar bail.

Alleged Gang Member Ends Up Behind Bars

Santa Monica Police say witnesses who reported a fight in progress in the area of 14th Street and Michigan Avenue on June 20 flagged officers on patrol down. They say as officers drove in the 1700 block of 14th Street they saw a man enter the front passenger door of a beige sedan and lean out the window of the car, gesturing and yelling at two men on the curb. Lawmen report officers stopped the car before it left the area and detained the occupants, one of whom the officers recognized as a local gang member. The two pedestrians told the officers that the man seen getting into the car had brandished a knife and challenged them to fight. Authorities say a knife was discovered inside the sedan near the passenger seat. Lawmen report the passenger was carrying US currency, a bandana, and a cell phone. They say the passenger in the car Donald Quintana of Los Angeles was arrested for brandishing a weapon, possession of a counterfeit $20 bill, a probation violation, and a gang enhancement.

Lifeguards Catch Alleged Beach Thief

Santa Monica Police say officers working a detail on the beach answered a radio call to assist lifeguards who were detaining a theft suspect in the 1700 block of the beach. The incident happened on June 20 at approximately 7:35 p.m. Authorities say the lifeguards had been notified by their dispatchers that a beach patron witnessed the suspect, Laura Morales of Los Angeles, taking his property; a camera and cell phone, from his towel and called out to the nearby tower lifeguard for help. Lawmen report the lifeguards stopped Morales before she left the area and placed her in handcuffs to await responding police officers. They say then a second victim came forward to report that a small Nike drawstring bag containing his iPhone and cash had been taken from his towel while he was swimming, but he did not see who had taken his property. Officers say they recovered the second victim's cell phone and bag from Morales' purse. They say Morales had several additional items in her purse, including a Tiffany bracelet, women's sunglasses, a white iPhone, and a Samsung phone with a Speck brand case. She was arrested for possession of stolen property. Police say later, while they were booking the suspect into the Santa Monica Jail, the officers received a phone call from a third victim who had been alerted to the arrest by an employee of the Shutters Hotel. Authorities say he third victim came to the station and positively identified the additional property as having been stolen from her earlier in the day while she was at the beach.