A thief or multiple thieves vandalized about 12 cars and a home in the beach communities of Playa Del Rey and Venice Beach. Anastassia Olmos reports for NBC Los Angeles on April 18, 2024.
A trail of broken glass and graffiti were left behind after a thief or multiple thieves vandalized cars and a home in three neighborhoods in Los Angeles' Westside.
Residents in beach communities of Playa Del Rey and Venice are the targets of multiple car break-ins.
A burglar vandalized Trent Marlow’s car with a hammer early Thursday morning.
“I came out to go to work, and my car was smashed in,” said Marlow, a Playa Del Rey resident, whose surveillance footage caught the crime. “Then, I noticed my neighbor's car was smashed in, and another neighbor's car was smashed in.”
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A total of five cars were hit on Sunridge Street and several more down Trolleyway Street in Playa Del Rey. At least two cars were struck a mile up the road on Manchester Avenue.
Marlow believes the thief or thieves are after garage openers and house keys.
"They came by in the same car on Saturday to one of my other neighbors, and they broke into his car.”
Across the Marina, residents are also sweeping glass from broken car windows.
Daniel Simon, who lives in Venice, says thieves took more than a thousand dollars worth of costumes from his vehicle.
"I went to go check on my car, and I noticed that a bunch of the stuff that I had in my trunk was strewn around the neighborhood on the floor,” he said.
Simon's is one of five cars broken into on Brooks Avenue.
Antoinette Reynolds, another resident in Venice, says thieves broke into her car two nights ago.
“They went through my little console where I keep all my coins,” Reynolds said. “The money that I have in my console is for the homeless.”
Thieves also spray painted cars and fences, according to residents.
“Man, this isn't cool," Lil Chronic, a rapper who lives in Venice, said. “It's up the whole street -- all this graffiti!”
Police have not confirmed any leads to the string of vandalism.
