Captain Jonathon Tom (left) onsite where the robbery occurred on March 28 in the Methodist Church parking lot/alley. A suspect has been arrested.
LAPD West L.A. Commanding Officer Captain Jonathan Tom sent the following information to several residents and Circling the News today, April 14.
A suspect involved in the March 28 robbery of the Palisades High School students in the Methodist Church alley off Bowdoin was identified. The person was taken into custody on April 12 in Glendale during an unrelated carjacking investigation.
According to Tom, West Los Angeles Detectives were able to connect the suspect to the robbery and were also able to obtain a confession from him. The investigation will continue in an attempt to identify the other suspects involved in the case. Detectives will present the case to the District Attorney for filing consideration.
On March 31, WLA (West Los Angeles Police Department) received information that the Crossroads School in Santa Monica had sent an email to middle school parents, warning them that there was an individual that was believed to be selling drugs and vape pens to minors. The email went on to describe the suspect and indicated that he was also believed to be selling to minors in the Palisades and Century City.
Tom immediately reached out to the Crossroads School and Santa Monica Police Department and obtained information that he provided to the WLA Narcotics Enforcement Detail.
“Our narcotics detectives immediately started working the case which included surveillance and an undercover operation,” Tom said. “Fortunately, they were able to arrest the suspect last night and he was booked for furnishing narcotics to a minor.”
He also alerted the community that “You will be happy to know that I was able to move the beach detail back to the beach/hillsides full time [the beach detail is two officers who are specifically designed to assist the Pacific Palisades Homeless Task Force Homelessness in keeping transients out of the brush in the Very High Fire Severity Zone].
“I will continue to prioritize their deployment there but please understand LAPD and WLA specifically are severely understaffed, and we are doing the best we can,” Tom said. “Have a wonderful day and I hope you enjoy all the beauty of the Palisades.”
Sharon Kilbride, who is a co-chair of the PPTFH, and volunteers her time canvassing the beaches and the hillsides, wrote back to Captain Tom: “Great news and kudos to your staff.
“The beach detail has been doing a fantastic job the past two days,” she said. “We have getting great data from them, and the predatory individuals seem to be leaving the area. Thank you.”
A cooking stove and tent were found in the dry brush in the parkland above PCH.
This is great news!