What started as a quiet drive through Rolling Hills Estates ended with a high-risk traffic stop, a brief foot chase through neighborhood yards, and two men in county custody after automated license plate readers flagged a Mercedes-Benz tied to a violent July 11 carjacking in Hawthorne, authorities said.
Deputies on the Palos Verdes Peninsula pulled over the 2015 Mercedes-Benz C300, which investigators say was also linked to a residential burglary in Torrance. One passenger bolted from the car and ran before he was tracked down and arrested. The takedown briefly shut neighborhood streets as deputies locked down the area to contain the scene.
How deputies tracked the car
According to KTLA, automated license plate readers in Rolling Hills Estates picked up the Mercedes as it drove through the city and immediately pinged deputies. After investigators tied the vehicle to the July 11 Hawthorne carjacking, deputies initiated a high-risk traffic stop near Palos Verdes Drive North and Rolling Vista Drive.
When the car finally pulled over, a passenger jumped out and sprinted into nearby yards, according to the station’s report. Deputies quickly set up a containment perimeter and, with help from an LASD helicopter overhead, located and arrested the fleeing man.
The release cited by KTLA identifies the driver as 26-year-old Yareht Pedraza of Bogotá and the passenger as 21-year-old Alan Peña Sabogn. Pedraza was booked on suspicion of felony taking or driving a stolen vehicle.
ALPRs and the peninsula
Automated license plate readers are nothing new on the Palos Verdes Peninsula. Cities in the area have spent years installing the systems, and the Lomita Sheriff’s Station has credited them with finding stolen cars and helping solve burglaries, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
The Rolling Hills Estates arrests land amid a broader pattern in Southern California of Colombian nationals accused of operating organized burglary crews, a trend some law enforcement officials have labeled “burglary tourism,” as reported by the Los Angeles Times.
Deputies say combining ALPR alerts with helicopter support and controlled, high-risk stops can lower the chances of dangerous high-speed pursuits while giving detectives a better shot at tying suspect vehicles to a wider pattern of thefts and burglaries.
Related investigations
KTLA reports that investigators also linked the Mercedes to a Torrance residential burglary and that Peña Sabogn was found to have a felony no-bail burglary warrant out of Colorado.
Authorities have not yet said whether prosecutors in Los Angeles County will pursue additional local charges or whether Colorado officials will move to extradite on the outstanding warrant. Detectives at the Lomita Station are still processing evidence and following up on leads tied to the car and its occupants.
Legal note
The men were booked on suspicion of the alleged offenses. A booking is not a conviction, and the case will move through the courts as investigators and prosecutors review the evidence. Anyone arrested is entitled to due process, and the district attorney’s office will decide on formal charges only if prosecutors believe they can be supported in court.
The Lomita Sheriff’s Station is overseeing the active investigation and is asking anyone with information or relevant video to contact detectives. Local residents said the perimeter and helicopter activity were loud but effective, and the incident ended without any reported injuries, which in a situation like this is about as good an outcome as deputies can hope for.
