LA Arrests Mount Over Looting, Curfews In Fire Evacuation Zones

1/13/2025 8:11:32 PM

(MENAFN- Live Mint) (Bloomberg) -- Los Angeles authorities detained scores of people for looting, as arrests over theft and curfew violations surge while wildfires continue to wreak havoc across the area.

Nine individuals have been charged for looting in the Palisades and Eaton fires, and one was charged with arson for setting a fire at a public park in the city of Azusa that was extinguished, Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman said Monday at a press conference.

“These are people who are seeking to exploit this tragedy for their own benefit,” Hochman said.

The Santa Monica Police Department said it has arrested more than 40 people since the unprecedented wildfires swept through multiple neighborhoods from Jan. 7 through Monday. Ten were arrested for burglary and six were in possession of burglary tools. Police officers found some people with ski masks and nylon gloves and tools including a window punch, who were arrested for being in evacuation areas with the intent of burglarizing homes.

Others were accused of flouting curfew orders and driving violations, the police department said in a statement. Curfew orders are in effect from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. in areas under mandatory evacuation orders, including parts of Santa Monica. Law enforcement officials at the press conference said the curfews are meant to safeguard against looting and violent criminal activity.

In addition to fire risk, water and air quality issues, Angelenos and fire victims have also had to deal with reports of scammers posing as Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) workers and first responders. A man dressed as a firefighter, wearing a fire jacket and helmet, was caught attempting a burglary in the Palisades area, LA County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath said at the press conference.“This is despicable,” she said.“We cannot tolerate it.”

California Attorney General Rob Bonta has warned residents about the threat of price gouging, fraud and other scams as residents scramble to find essential goods and accommodation.

“We are talking about people who have lost loved ones, whose homes have perished in the fires, who have lost treasured belongings, whose lives have been turned upside down, who are struggling and suffering,” Bonta said Saturday.“The last thing they need is for someone to victimize them again, exploit them and take advantage of them and harm them.”

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