Bad Check Scheme Foiled by Postal Clerk
Carmela Marie Corral, 24, of Long Beach, was arrested for suspicion of burglary and insufficient funds around noon Wednesday inside Laguna Beach’s downtown post office.
Police allege she is part of a larger ring of thieves fraudulently using bad checks to obtain stamps and reselling them to businesses at a discount. When police arrived to question Corral, her driver is suspected of abandoning her and driving off, Lt. Jason Kravetz said.
Corral allegedly attempted to use a $360 check to buy stamps, but the postal clerk called the bank to verify the check and learned she only had $25 in the account, Kravetz said.
Monday, July 16
Grand theft. 10:30 a.m. 300 block of S. Coast Hwy. Someone forced entry and stole $770 in vegetable oil.
Fraud report. 1 p.m. 500 block of Forest Ave. The city treasurer reported that two fraudulent checks totaling $4,722 were cashed using the city’s routing number and deposited in Brooklyn, N.Y.
Traffic stop. 9:06 p.m. 30900 Coast Hwy. A 42-year-old Phoenix woman was arrested for DUI and held for $2,500 bail.
Tuesday, July 17
Traffic stop. 12:21 a.m. 600 block Park Ave. A 47-year-old Ohio visitor was arrested for DUI and held for $2,500 bail.
Traffic stop. 1 a.m. 200 block Ocean Ave. Joey Marquez, 24, of Riverside, was arrested for DUI and held for $10,000 bail due to a prior arrest within 10 years.
Traffic stop. 3 a.m. Vista del Sol. A 34-year-old Dana Point woman was cited for DUI and held for $2,500 bail.
Defraud innkeeper. 6 p.m. 300 block of Forest Ave. Mary Taggart, 57, was arrested for suspicion of burglary and held for $20,000 bail.
Wednesday, July 18
Traffic stop. 2 a.m. Pearl St. A 32-year-old from Philadelphia was arrested for suspicion of DUI and held for $2,500 bail.
Fraud. 9 a.m. 12-02696. Vista de Catalina. Local residents found two unauthorized charges on a credit card statement, $414 charged at Staples, and $1,943 at a Pasadena restaurant. (Some dinner!)
Grand theft. 8:32 p.m. Someone signed for a UPS delivery to a local home containing $1,200 in audio equipment ordered from eBay.
TC. 9:18 p.m. 30800 Coast Hwy. A motorcyclist lost control of his bike and laid it down on the highway. He was uninjured and no other vehicles were involved.
Thursday, July 19
Traffic stop. 12:32 a.m. Blue Lagoon. A 58-year-old Los Angeles man was cited for DUI and held for $2,500 bail.
Traffic stop. 1:39 a.m. Broadway Pl. A 35-year-old Stanton resident was cited for DUI and held for $2,500 bail.
Traffic stop. 3:44 a.m. A 19-year-old from Anaheim was arrested for DUI and held for $2,500 bail.
Traffic collision. 7:39 a.m. 900 block Laguna Canyon Rd. A 38-year-old Santa Ana man suffered minor injuries when he fell asleep at the wheel and crashed into a parked trash truck. The unlicensed driver will be cited, police said.
Search warrant. 7:51 a.m. 3400 block Ave of the Arts, Costa Mesa. Jonathan D. Crawford, 34, of Santa Ana, was arrested for an outstanding felony warrant for possession of stolen property. Further details were unavailable. He was held without bail.
Grand theft. 8:12 a.m. 600 blk Park Ave. A camera and bike were stolen from the high school’s equipment room, a loss totaling $2,000.
Vandalism. 9:30 p.m. A neighbor is suspected of cutting down a tree valued at $4,500 in a resident’s yard.
Saturday, July 21
Pedestrian stop. 8:42 p.m. Forest Ave. Joshua Michael Lee Miles, 26, of Dana Point was arrested for suspicion of being under the influence of drugs and possession of narcotics for sale. When his items were searched, police found bindles of heroin inside a hollowed out lighter. Bail was set at $25,000.
Sunday, July 22
Traffic stop. 1:31 a.m. Aster St. Gregory Guerroro, 56, of Hawthorne, was arrested for DUI and held for $2,500 bail.
Traffic collision. 3:25 a.m. Laguna Canyon Rd. The driver of a truck and his passenger were injured when the boat they were hauling rammed through the cab after breaking free when the truck veered off the road and struck a boulder.
Traffic stop. 10:22 p.m., Glenneyre St. A 37-year-old woman from Baldwin was cited for DUI and held for $2,500 bail.
Traffic stop. 11:44 p.m. 2200 block of Laguna Canyon Rd. A 31-year-old Aliso Viejo resident was cited for DUI and held for $2,500 bail.
Monday, July 23
Burglary. 10:53 a.m. 200 block of Forest Avenue. A 26-year-old Laguna Beach woman was arrested for suspicion of burglary, detained outside a store where police found several items secreted inside a baby stroller.
