05/03/2019
Airtech will always be happy to help the community
In a surprise move to restore an autistic teen’s faith in law enforcement and make him whole again after his cell was stolen in a brutal attack, a15-year-old gratefully accepted a replacement phone made possibly by generous community donations and the efforts of police officers at the Topanga Community Police Station.
Anthony, who police said was a victim of a savage beating and a robbery by two alleged gang members in front of his 8-year-old twin sisters just a few houses from where he lived in Canoga Park, was accompanied by them and their mother on Tuesday on the pretense of getting a tour of the station.
Within 48 hours of putting out a message on social media about the attack and loss, police officials raised the $500 required to buy a refurbished iPhone.
LAPD Senior Lead Officers Kari McNamee and Duc Dao with Anthony and his family at the Topanga Division in Canoga Park on Tuesday, April 9, 2019. (Photo by Dean Musgrove, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
By MARIANNE LOVE |
PUBLISHED: April 9, 2019 at 7:28 pm | UPDATED: April 10, 2019 at 11:46 am
In a surprise move to restore an autistic teen’s faith in law enforcement and make him whole again after his cell was stolen in a brutal attack, a15-year-old gratefully accepted a replacement phone made possibly by generous community donations and the efforts of police officers at the Topanga Community Police Station.
Anthony, who police said was a victim of a savage beating and a robbery by two alleged gang members in front of his 8-year-old twin sisters just a few houses from where he lived in Canoga Park, was accompanied by them and their mother on Tuesday on the pretense of getting a tour of the station.
Within 48 hours of putting out a message on social media about the attack and loss, police officials raised the $500 required to buy a refurbished iPhone.
“I’m glad I was given back what was taken from me that day. Thank you very much,” said Anthony, whose family’s name was being withheld. “I hope this doesn’t happen to anyone else.”
The outreach to buy a refurbished cell for Anthony was coordinated by Senior Lead Officer Duke Dao with AirTech, a retail communication store in the Westfield Topanga & The Village shopping mall in Canoga Park.
“So many wanted to donate (to the cause) that I had to post a message on my page to let them know we reached our goal,” Dao said. “We had to turn away many donors.”
Anthony, dressed in grey shirt, shorts and shoes and sporting a mustache, made his first call to his father to tell him where he was and what was happening.
He needs a cell to keep in contact with his family because of a severe case of asthma.
Anthony suffered contusions to his face, a possible fracture to a cheekbone and a bloody nose from the attack, according to officials.
Within 36 hours of the March 11 attack, two suspects were arrested by LAPD gang detective Alex Valencia.
“They asked him where he was from. After that and when (Anthony and his sisters) had finished their walk, they attacked him,” Valencia said, adding that the crime took place within a territory a Canoga Park gang claims as its turf. “They said they felt disrespected. Respect in a gang is big.”
Valencia said there was video evidence of the attack that helped in quickly identifying the suspects.
One of the suspects is a 16-year-old juvenile. Under state law, any information about him is kept confidential.
The second is Alvaro Vasquez, 18.
Vasquez was arraigned Monday on suspicion of three felony counts of robbery, battery with serious bodily injury and assault, all attached with a gang allegation, according to Deputy District Attorney Matthew Vodnoy.
“The charges carry a potential prison term,” Vodnoy said.
Vasquez, who is currently in custody, is scheduled for a preliminary hearing setting on May 5 in the San Fernando branch of the Los Angeles County Superior Court, according to Vodnoy.
Violence and robbery are not prevalent in the Topanga Police Station’s territory, according to Doug Humphrey, the commanding officer of the division’s detectives. But it’s not uncommon citywide for gang members, or those associated with gangs, to engage in violent crimes such as robbery, he said.
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