Burglary

Michelle Reiter lost $4,000 in cash, a 32-inch TV and a laptop computer when her Glendale home was burglarized. But also stolen that day was something far more valuable — her 11-year-old teacup Yorkshire terrier, Sophie. Since that time, she has been frantically searching for Sophie, not only because the dog is her greatest love, but because Sophie needs periodic medication for her bowels. Sophie was reported stolen after burglars entered Reiter's home on May 7 in the 600 block of Beulah Street through a rear bathroom window and ransacked the inside, according to Glendale Police Department reports.

An ex-convict who was free on probation has been arrested after police discovered tens of thousands of dollars' worth of items they say he may have stolen from cars parked near movie studios. Police believe Sean C. Ray, 35, of Los Angeles rented a Mercedes-Benz convertible to avoid calling attention to himself while driving the streets and scouting cars to burglarize. Ray was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of receiving stolen property, LAPD Det. Jim Hays said at a news conference in front of the Hollywood Community Police Station.

A Palm Springs man is accusing the Riverside County Sheriff's Department of discriminating against gay jail inmates because of a policy that, in effect, bans homosexuals from a successful drug rehabilitation program. Michael Lamar Salomonson, 46, a chronic methamphetamine user, was arrested and charged with burglarizing a Palm Springs home in December. His attorney said that, during plea negotiations, the Riverside County district attorney's office agreed to send Salomonson to the 180-day Residential Substance Abuse Program at the detention center in Banning in lieu of a two-year jail sentence.

The notorious "Barefoot Bandit" was sentenced to 7½ years in prison Friday for an improbable odyssey of burglaries, thefts and stolen-aircraft joy rides across eight states that turned him into a cult hero around the world — and in the remote wooded islands where he grew up, an object of fear. Judge Vickie Churchill declined to impose the full 10 years sought by prosecutors for Colton Harris-Moore, 20, citing the young defendant's offer to make restitution to his victims, his expressions of remorse and a dramatic history laid out in court of a childhood full of abuse, neglect, poverty and alcoholic parents that led him to begin stealing food and shoes from neighbors at age 13. "It's a tragedy that he had to steal food because he had nothing to eat as a young boy. That he had to bear the taunts and jeers of classmates who ridiculed him because he lived in a derelict mobile home.

San Bernardino County sheriff's investigators are investigating whether a Los Angeles police sergeant arrested on suspicion of committing a burglary last weekend in a foothills community is responsible for other break-ins nearby. Sgt. Lucien "Lou" Daigle, 44, was arrested Sunday after a homeowner reportedly confronted him inside her large Mentone home and doused him with a potent form of pepper spray typically used to ward off bears. Daigle, an 18-year LAPD veteran, fled but crashed his car a few miles away, apparently overcome by the repellent, said San Bernardino County Sheriff's Sgt. Paul Morrison.

A Los Angeles police sergeant was arrested Sunday on suspicion of burglary after a woman found him inside her home near the San Bernardino National Forest and sprayed him with a potent form of pepper spray that is typically used to ward off bears, authorities said. LAPD Sgt. Lucien Daigle allegedly fled but crashed his car a few miles from the woman's Mentone home, said San Bernardino County Sheriff's Sgt. Paul Morrison. Daigle reeked of pepper spray when he was approached and had valuables inside his car that belonged to the woman, Morrison said.

Misdemeanor burglary charges have been filed against a young man wearing a Gumby suit who allegedly tried to rob a 7-Eleven store in San Diego. Similar charges were also filed in San Diego County Superior Court against his buddy, who allegedly acted as the getaway driver, according to the district attorney's office. Arraignment is set for Nov. 8 for Gumby-suit wearer Jacob Kiss, 19, and his buddy Jason Giramma for the Labor Day caper. The two later turned themselves in to San Diego police.

British police and law courts working round the clock continue rounding up rioters that laid waste to homes and businesses throughout the country this week. By midday Friday arrests totaled around 1,700, but a Scotland Yard spokeswoman said "that number is changing all the time. " In London on Friday morning police arrested a man in connection with the murder of 68-year-old Richard Mannington Bowes, who was severely beaten by rioters Monday night. He died in a hospital in the early hours of Friday, bringing to five the death toll from four nights of rioting.

Here is roundup of alleged cons, frauds and schemes to watch out for. Burglary season — The summer months of July and August typically have the highest rate of home burglaries, in part because many people leave town for vacations, the Better Business Bureau said in a recent alert. Homeowners should consider installing security systems before they vacation this summer, the BBB said. Homes without such systems are about three times as likely to be burglarized as those with the systems, it said.

A team of burglars has been roaming the streets of downtown Los Angeles, search for aging, vacant buildings they can strip bare. Over the last year, at least four buildings have been stripped clear of copper wiring and other metals during brazen heists that often take days to complete. Police estimate each job can yield $1 million or more in metals ? and cost much more for property owners to repair the damage. On Thursday, detectives said they caught one alleged member of the team in the act at the old Garfield Building at 8th and Hill streets.