On January 10, 2012, the owner of a 2002 Chevrolet Malibu contacted the La Verne Police Department to report the vehicle stolen. The La Verne Police responded to the scene, prepared a stolen vehicle report and had the stolen Malibu’s information entered into the state and federal crime computers. This routine police action automatically activated

On Monday afternoon, January 2, 2012, two suspects entered an used car dealership and requested to test drive a 2004 Lexus LS430 that was advertised for sale. The dealer allowed the suspects to “try it out around the block.” When the suspects failed to return with the vehicle, the dealer contacted the Santa Monica Police Department to