LAPD Searching for Violent Man Seen Near Local Elementary Schools

Police are searching for a violent man in Pacific Palisades who is believed to be suffering from mental illness, according to Los Angeles Police Department Senior Lead Officer Michael Moore, who informed the Pacific Palisades Community Council at its latest meeting on Thursday, September 12.

The suspect, who has a teardrop tattoo on the left side of his face, has been accused of suspiciously driving around elementary schools in the Palisades and instigating verbal and violent confrontations with civilians, including punching somebody sitting in another vehicle, Moore said.

The man, who was placed on a 72-hour hold by authorities but later released, is suspected to have been staying at his grandmother’s house. When the access to her vehicle was revoked, the suspect allegedly slashed her tires, but no charges were filed against him.

A Ring camera from a home on Lachman Lane captured the suspect randomly approaching a parked vehicle and smashing the windshield with a hammer before calmly driving away.

Other witnesses have also reported the suspect trying to lure young girls into his car with candy, but Moore said no formal police reports on these incidents have been made.

Moore informed the community it is not too late to report any suspicious activity they might have seen and urged the importance of such reports.

“We need these reports, the city attorney needs these reports,” Moore said. “If you know somebody that says, ‘I was a victim of this guy,’ please encourage them to file a report or to contact me to get the ball rolling on it.”

Moore said sightings of the man during the current school year have mostly been around Marquez Charter Elementary School, where he is reported to have once pulled a knife on somebody and “gestured in a threatening manner,” which is a crime.

“Detectives are in the process of getting that case filed,” Moore said. “They have recently gotten the victim to do a photo lineup of the suspect and he was positively [identified].”

Moore said the case is now in the hands of the city attorney, who will give him an opportunity to turn himself in before a warrant for his arrest is issued.

“In the meantime, we are looking for him,” he said.