LAW ENFORCEMENT MBPD – arrests seven in wake of second Pasha heist
by Mark McDermott
For the second time in a little less than a year, a crew of armed and masked robbers descended upon Pasha Fine Jewelry in downtown Manhattan Beach and conducted a brazen “smash and grab” theft, using hammers to break displays cases and fleeing to awaiting getaway cars with thousands of dollars worth of merchandise. But this time, the criminals did not get away.
Manhattan Beach Police Department officers responded to the incident, which occurred on March 22, at 5:53 p.m. By 7:23 p.m., a vehicle was identified, and when its driver refused to stop, MBPD patrol cars engaged in a chase that led all the way to Los Angeles. Five suspects were arrested at the end of that chase, and two more were arrested in another traffic stop in the early morning hours, also in Los Angeles. According to MBPD, items from the jewelry store were found in both vehicles. MBPD worked with LAPD and Gardena SWAT teams to search a location believed to be related to the robbery.
MBPD Chief Rachel Johnson expressed gratitude for the assistance from the other agencies, and pride in MBPD’s work on the case.
“I am proud of the team for working all leads and working together to apprehend the offenders involved in this crime,” Johnson said.
“Your Police Department and your City Council’s number one priority is to keep the entire city of Manhattan Beach safe,” said Mayor Richard Montgomery. “One of the key ways in which we achieve this is through the diligent work from MBPD and our regional law enforcement partners. It took a great team effort to arrest the criminals who committed a brazen act in our downtown….I’m confident that Chief Johnson and her team will continue their investigations, leaving no stone unturned until we catch and jail all the individuals involved in last night’s robbery and the smash and grab that occurred at Pasha Fine Jewelry last June.”
Arrested were Alan Daniels, 24, from LA; Twuan Walker, 18, from Lancaster; Eworth Sutherland, 22, from LA; Johndean Blocker, 22, from LA; Jamil Edwards, 22, from LA; and a male and female juvenile, each age 17.
Johnson said that one of the things that worked in MBPD’s favor, in this case, was its timing, which was near a shift change, meaning a lot of officers were at the station.
“The blessing for us is we had a lot of people working, a lot of people just getting off work who were able to come back and help us work the case,” Johnson said. “Because there were a lot of suspects, a lot of vehicles, and a lot to try to process in order to apprehend these folks. And where Pasha is, it’s pretty easy to get out of the city quickly if you know where to go, so we were really invested in trying to identify the car and bring these folks to justice. It was a lot of teamwork, using exterior cameras from downtown businesses to get some investigative leads to help us ultimately locate these folks and put them in custody.”
Johnson said she’d just arrived home when both her personal and work phones started ringing, and she tuned into the portable radio she always carries with her to see MBPD fully spring into action.
“The teamwork, the calm on the radio, and everyone just pitching in to help — it was just outstanding,” Johnson said. “It was one of those things where I was really, really proud of them, but I was also a little jealous, because it’s not my role anymore to go out and catch bad guys. But I was just so proud of the teamwork, everybody trying to figure out what needs to be done next. You know, arresting people is very exciting, but the hard work and the necessary work is to obtain statements from the victims and obtain the relevant video footage from everywhere and all these other little things that help bring a whole case together. And so to see everyone’s focus was where it needed to be in that moment, I was just very, very proud.”
The apprehension of suspects so quickly after the robbery was particularly significant given the nature of this crime. The Pasha smash and grab robbery that occurred last June caused ripples of alarm throughout the community. Although the investigation of that case is ongoing, no arrests have yet been made. MBPD’s apparent success in thwarting this Pasha robbery carries added significance because of this history.
“There are a lot of watershed moments in law enforcement, and throughout our history, where you see what happens when people come together,” Johnson said. “And this was one of those times where everyone came together. Whether that was people who were supposed to be off work already staying to provide support or handle calls for service in the city, or people who were on night shift staying late the next day to help with paperwork and anything else that needed to be done, it was just really impressive. Detectives were basically awake for a full day. They went and took naps but then went back to work, trying to shore up more of this case and continue the investigation.”
MBPD Detectives ask community members who witnessed this incident, took video or photographs, or anyone who has any information pertinent to this incident, to contact Detective Klosowski at (310) 802-5123, or the MBPD Tip Line (310) 802-5171 if you wish to remain anonymous. ER