Los Angeles County public officials are vowing to crack down on people stealing from homes as devastating wildfires rip through the region, insisting that lawbreakers will face consequences.
“In the midst of the emergency, we have all seen individuals who are targeting vulnerable communities by burglarizing and looting homes. This is simply unacceptable,” Kathryn Barger, a member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, told reporters Thursday.
Barger then addressed looters directly: “I promise you, you will be held accountable. Shame on those who are preying on our residents during this time of crisis.”
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has arrested 20 people since the wildfires broke out Tuesday, Barger said, adding that law enforcement officers were “proactively patrolling to protect these communities from looting and any criminal activity.”
Sheriff Robert Luna offered a stern warning of his own in remarks to reporters, decrying any lawbreaking amid the wildfire crisis as “absolutely unacceptable.”
“I’m going to make this crystal clear to everybody out there,” Luna said. “We are up to 20 individuals who chose to go into our areas and deprive these poor people, who have been through so much, of their property.” He said he expected the number to grow.
Luna said he planned to give new direction to sheriff’s deputies who encounter people in zones that are under mandatory evacuation orders: “If you are in one of these areas and you do not belong there, you will be subject to arrest. I hope that is as clear as I can make it.”
Luna said he wants a curfew for areas around the Palisades and Eaton fires, focusing on areas where people have been told to evacuate, to combat looting. The details were being worked out Thursday.
Officials are also seeking to have members of the California National Guard assist. They will assist in traffic and infrastructure protection, Luna said.
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman blasted looting as “despicable” and promised to prosecute any offenders with “maximal punishment.”
Police departments across Southern California confirmed details of some of the thefts.
In the small hilltop town of Sierra Madre, a home was burglarized Wednesday after the owners evacuated.
“The whole house was ransacked,” Sierra Madre Police Detective Sgt. Charles Kamchamnan said.
No arrests were made.
“It’s unfortunate,” Kamchamnan said, “but it’s something we see throughout the whole county, with criminals taking advantage of the situation.”
In the evacuation zone of Arcadia, a city in eastern Los Angeles County near the Eaton Fire, a home was burglarized early Wednesday. High-end purses were among the stolen items, Arcadia Police Lt. John Bonomo said.
The home was equipped with an alarm and security cameras, Bonomo said, but they weren’t functioning because the power had been shut off. The police department has stepped up neighborhood patrols and posted officers at the site of road closures to guard against looting.
“If anyone goes up there, they will most likely be spotted by our officers and questioned,” Bonomo said. “We’re taking a very proactive approach.”
In Santa Monica, at least three people were arrested on suspicion of committing burglaries within the Palisades Fire evacuation zone, Lt. Erika R. Aklufi of the city’s police department said Thursday evening.
At least one private security company has been inundated with calls from homeowners concerned about looting. Wally Alqadhi, operations manager for American Protection Security, based in Covina, said that his phone has been ringing almost nonstop but that he has had to reject all of the requests.
“We can’t get to these areas, and it’s not safe for my officers to be there anyway,” he said.
Local officials condemned the looting as Southern California woke up to a third day of devastation and uncertainty due to the fires. Five people have died and nearly 30,000 acres have burned since Tuesday, and more than 100,000 people have been forced from their homes.
The Palisades Fire is the largest, spanning 17,234 acres — roughly 27 square miles. Images and videos from the scene showed block after block virtually wiped off the map, homes and businesses replaced by smoldering heaps of ash and rubble.
