Two separate home burglaries struck Chatsworth about eight hours apart Friday, and by the time LAPD officers finished sorting it out, five people were under arrest — including two suspects whose getaway car slammed into a victim's vehicle before they took off running in South Los Angeles.
The first break-in happened around 1 p.m. on the 10600 block of Willowbrae Avenue, west of Canoga Avenue, according to NBC Los Angeles. The homeowner was away when it happened but later reviewed her security camera footage and saw at least two people had broken into her home, the outlet reported. LAPD Devonshire Division officers tracked down and arrested three people suspected in that daytime burglary within roughly an hour.
Officers were already in the area when a second burglary was reported that evening, a little before 9 p.m., on the 10500 block of Alabama Avenue — about one-eighth of a mile southwest of the first break-in and on the other side of the railroad tracks that run through Chatsworth. This time, the homeowner actually spotted the intruders as they tried to leave her property in a getaway car, the station's report states.
Chase Ends in a Crash and a Footrace
LAPD officers located the suspected getaway vehicle and worked to confirm whether anything had been taken from the home. Once that burglary was confirmed, LAPD Hollywood officers attempted to stop the vehicle, but it did not stop, according to the same account. The pursuit stretched from Hollywood into the Vermont Square neighborhood of South Los Angeles, near 54th Street and Hoover Street.
There, the fleeing vehicle crashed into the victim's own car as the suspects tried to escape, leaving the suspect vehicle inoperable. The occupants then ran from the wreck on foot, per the outlet's reporting. LAPD officers ultimately arrested two people suspected in Friday evening's burglary, though police said they were still searching for one additional suspect.
A Pattern of Break-Ins Across Devonshire Territory
The two Chatsworth incidents mark the latest in a string of residential burglaries that have periodically rattled the LAPD's Devonshire Division, which covers roughly 210,000 residents across 48.3 square miles that include Chatsworth, Northridge, Porter Ranch, and parts of Granada Hills and Winnetka, according to Greg Hill & Associates. In May, officers responded to a so-called hot prowl burglary on Chatsworth's Celtic Street, where intruders entered a home and stole property while the occupants were inside, as reported by MyNewsLA.com.
Just days before Friday's arrests, Devonshire officers had already made headlines for cracking down on property crime — on August 11, officers arrested four suspects following a vehicle pursuit tied to an interrupted catalytic converter theft in Reseda, recovering stolen property and burglary tools in the process, per LAPD Online.
Crime Trending Down, But Sprees Still Draw Scrutiny
The Chatsworth burglaries come even as Devonshire Division's own numbers show residential break-ins falling sharply. At a May meeting, division officials told the Community-Police Advisory Board that residential burglaries were down 57% year-to-date compared with the previous year. Citywide, LAPD data for 2024 showed a 6.7% drop in property crimes overall, including a 7.1% reduction in burglaries, according to Safe and Sound Security.
Still, localized sprees have repeatedly triggered a heavier police response in the San Fernando Valley. In April, Mayor Karen Bass directed LAPD leadership to add patrols, high-visibility vehicles, license plate readers, and air support to the Valley after 15 residential break-ins occurred over a 12-day span, as detailed by Patch. That kind of organized, cross-neighborhood activity has shown up before in Devonshire territory: a 22-year-old arrested in May was linked to roughly 25 break-ins spanning West L.A., Devonshire, Mission, and West Valley divisions, and a 2023 case saw a 21-year-old held on $1 million bail for a string of burglaries in nearby Granada Hills and Porter Ranch.
What Suspects Could Face
Under California Penal Code Sections 459 and 460, entering an inhabited home with intent to commit theft or a felony amounts to first-degree residential burglary — a felony carrying state prison terms of two, four, or six years and fines up to $10,000, according to Eisner Gorin LLP. Separately, fleeing a pursuing officer with willful or wanton disregard for safety under California Vehicle Code Section 2800.2 is a wobbler offense that can be charged as a felony carrying up to three years in state prison, the firm notes, a statute that applies directly to the driver who crashed into the victim's car while trying to escape.
It remains unclear whether the two Chatsworth burglaries were connected or carried out by coordinated crews, and police have not detailed what property, if any, was stolen from either home. The search for the sixth suspect tied to Friday evening's break-in was still active as of the latest reporting.
