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Police Beat - Redondo Beach
Car-jacking attempt
After spending an evening shopping at the Galleria mall, a married couple was getting ready to start their trip home in their 2000 Mercedes SUV. The husband had just opened the passenger door to let his wife in and had walked around to the driver's side when a man walked up to him, pointed an automatic-type handgun at him and said "Gimme the keys." The victim complied and he and his wife fled into the mall, alerting mall security and police officers. The suspect, who was accompanied by another man in a dark-colored Jeep Cherokee, was unable to start the truck. He fled on foot while his partner drove away. Police say high-end sport utility vehicles by manufacturers like Mercedes and Lexus have been targets of thieves in recent months, but this was the first incident in Redondo Beach.
Assault and bikejacking
A teenaged boy was riding his bike near the corner of Beland and Perkins when a white minivan pulled up alongside him. In broad daylight, one of the van's passengers opened the side door and pushed the boy off the bike. The van stopped and three men and a boy got out and started punching and kicking the fallen cyclist. One of the four assailants kept striking the boy as he lay on the asphalt, while the other three loaded the bike into the van. One of the robbers said "If you have any money, give it to me," and tried to search the boy's pockets, but got nothing. The four drove off in the mini-van and have not been caught.
Assault and boardjacking
A teenage boy was skateboarding on the corner of Rindge and Gates when he was approached by a young man he had seen around town at places like the Hermosa Skatepark. The young man told the boy to hand over the boy's blue and silver Carrol skateboard. When the boy refused, the man grabbed him, put him in a headlock and took his board. The man drove away, but a witness saw his license plate. Police apprehended a suspect and the skateboard was recovered.
Drive-by plinking
A teenage girl was standing on the corner of Speyer and Harkness at about 8:30 p.m. last Thursday when a blue Chevy Astro van drove past. One of the two young men in the van fired a pellet gun at her, hitting her on the left cheek and on her shoulder. The pellets stung she said, but they didn't break the skin.
Sweet tooth
Someone broke into an ice cream truck parked at a Mobile Station on the 3500 block of Inglewood Avenue. The thief stole about $50 in cash, a radio and assorted candy and chips from the 1984 GMC Hummer. No ice cream was taken but the theft resulted in a definite loss of good humor.
Suburban burglary
A house was broken into on the 1900 block of Bataan Street Sunday night. The burglar slipped in through an open window and took off with some cash and the owner's Black 1996 Chevy Suburban that was parked in the street.