Crime News

Catching up with some local crime stories:

Donut shop owner Moun Chau pleaded guilty last month to charges of illegally purchasing elephant ivory on eBay. Chau, the owner of Pixie Donuts in the Von's Shopping Center on Base Line Rd., had purchased and imported about $2,750 worth of ivory from Thailand, according to the Daily Bulletin's Wes Woods II:

Moun Chau, 50, will face up to five years in federal prison and up to $250,000 in fines when he is sentenced Oct. 18 in Los Angeles federal court.

Chau, who owns Pixie Donuts in Claremont and lives in Montclair, pleaded guilty April 8 to one count of importing ivory in part of a plea agreement reached with prosecutors.

Chau sentencing hearing is scheduled for October.

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Claremont Courier reporter Tony Krickl had a story last week about Claremont PD officer Matt Hamill breaking his ankle while in pursuit of a shoplifting suspect at the Von's in the same shopping center as Pixie Donuts.

Krickl's also had a blog post that noted that the same suspect, 19-year-old Robert Hunt, was arrested by CPD immediately after he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor shoplifting charge. Krickl explained the reasons for Hunt's second arrest:

During the booking process, Hunt's fingerprints were taken and entered into the Cal-ID print system. On Tuesday, a match was returned on the prints for a residential burglary that occurred in Claremont on April 24.

During that incident, a resident in the 400 block of Platt Boulevard woke to voices heard in his home and the sound of footsteps leaving through the front door. It was discovered that someone entered the home and stole a laptop.

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The Tyler Singleton story also made the Krickl's Courier City Beat. Singleton, a star running back on the Claremont High School football team, pleaded no contest two charges of statutory rape. He had been accused of raping a 14-year-old girl in a public restroom at Claremont's Cahuilla Park.

Singleton received a six-month prison sentence, according to Krickl.

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Krickl reported on one other recent crime story involving a prowler in a home on the 1100 block of Morningside Dr. On May 5, a resident whose sleep was disturbed by strange noises discovered the prowler in the bedroom of his seven-year-old daughter. The prowler fled on foot, but CPD officers were later able to identify a suspect.

The police ended up arresting a 17-year-old Claremonter who lived in the same area as the home on Morningside Dr.