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Victim in 'heinous' Venice Canal sexual assault taken off life support

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Victim in 'heinous' Venice Canal sexual assault taken off life support

One of the victims of a brutal sexual assault along the Venice canals was taken off life support Friday night after being in a coma for nearly two months.

Sarah Alden, 53, was declared brain dead earlier this week. She had planned to move across the country from Massachusetts to Venice Beach in California, a dream she had worked hard to achieve.

Ready to start her new life, she had just signed a lease for an apartment in Venice and was walking along the famed canals on April 6 when she was brutally raped and assaulted.

A second victim, Mary Klein, 54, was also attacked that night. She was left severely injured and believed the attacker aimed to kill her.

Police confirmed that both attacks had a “sexual element” to them. The suspect, Anthony Francisco Jones, 29, was arrested days later on April 11 for the assaults.

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Jones was captured on security cameras walking near the canals that night holding a liquor bottle that investigators said was used in the attacks. He is also believed to be a homeless man.

  • Sarah Alden is seen in a personal photo.
  • Sarah Alden is seen in a personal photo.
  • Sarah Alden is seen in a personal photo.
  • The suspect, Anthony Jones, 29, seen walking around the Venice canals area on April 6, 2024.
  • Residents walking along the Venice canals in California. (KTLA)

Although Klein survived her attack, Alden remained in a coma. On Friday night, friends and family surrounded Alden at the hospital as she was taken off life support.

“It’s very sudden and shocking,” said Cynthia King, Alden’s friend. “She was extremely intelligent, well-educated and witty. She was stolen from us.”

Earlier in May, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced charges in the case.

“The level of brutality that was engaged in was very reprehensible,” said L.A. County District Attorney George Gascón.

Loved ones remain devastated, remembering Alden as a loving mother of two sons.

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  • The suspect, Anthony Jones, 29, seen walking around the Venice canals area on April 6, 2024.
  • Mary Klein, 54, is seen in a photo posted on GoFundMe.
  • The suspect, Anthony Jones, 29, seen walking around the Venice canals area on April 6, 2024.
  • The suspect in the Venice canal attacks is seen on a Ring security camera video on April 6, 2024. (Viewer video)
  • Venice attacks
  • 2 women violently assaulted by same man in Southern California, police say
  • 2 women violently assaulted by same man in Southern California, police say
  • Gascon venice presser
  • 2 women violently assaulted by same man in Southern California, police say

“I feel like I’m in an alternate reality,” King said. “This isn’t even real.”

Alden’s family said the woman’s organs will be donated to help save others’ lives. The attacks have left Venice residents stunned and worried for their safety.

Resident Aimee Nelson said there’s been a notable increase in violent crime and neighbors are watching out for each other. One neighbor even provided her with pepper spray and a stun gun.

“Our neighbors have been asking each other to walk them home, people are avoiding going out at night because they feel unsafe,” said Ramon Goni, a Venice local. “We had an active shooter right behind us a few weeks ago.”

Some residents told KTLA they believed the canals to be a relatively safe area but are no longer certain.

“It was a little pocket that was different from the rest of Venice, away from all the homeless and where the attacks were,” said a resident named Tim. “But now, I think [the crime] has penetrated in.”

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The suspect, Jones, was arrested and charged with forcible rape, torture, attempted murder, mayhem, sexual penetration by use of force and sodomy by use of force.

“Our hearts and deepest sympathies go out to the victim’s family and friends during this unimaginably difficult time,” said the DA’s office. “Our office is evaluating how we will proceed to ensure the defendant is held fully accountable for his conduct.”

A GoFundMe to help Alden’s family with medical and funeral expenses can be found here.

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Los Angeles, Ca

Video shows teens attempting to burglarize San Bernardino County home

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Video shows teens attempting to burglarize San Bernardino County home

Surveillance video captured the moment a group of teens attempted to burglarize a home in San Bernardino County.

The suspects targeted the home on the 1100 block of Cedar Court in Upland around 11:30 p.m. on Monday night.

The homeowner, Jamie Asanovich, had left to make an Uber Eats delivery while her elderly mother was still inside the house.

But just minutes after driving away, her Ring doorbell camera alerted her that someone was at their front door.

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“My mom called and she said, ‘Someone’s at the door knocking,’” recalled Asanovich. “I could see him on the Ring doorbell and I said, ‘I’ll be there in a minute. Don’t answer the door.’”

Within minutes, Asanovich’s mother called her back, feeling scared as three suspects had jumped over the fence and into their backyard.

The grandmother turned on a yard light and saw the suspects begin removing a window screen and attempting to enter the home.

Asanovich turned her car around and immediately rushed back home while calling the police to report the in-progress burglary.

As she approached her home, she spotted the suspects running to a getaway car and speeding away. She decided to follow them while letting the police dispatcher know their every move.

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“When they got into the freeway, I kind of lost them because their lights were off,” Asanovich said.

She exited the freeway at Archibald Avenue in Rancho Cucamonga and spotted the suspects’ car turning into an apartment complex near 19th Street and Hermosa Avenue.

Upland police officers arrived at the complex shortly after and arrested five teen suspects inside the vehicle. The driver was an 18-year-old female and the other four suspects were juveniles.

“We did find some flashlights, a screwdriver and a hammer,” said Sgt. Jacob Kirk with Upland Police. “Some of the juveniles were site-released and one of them was booked into juvenile hall and the adult was booked. It was for attempted residential burglary.”

Police said the juvenile who was booked was on probation for a previous theft-related charge at the time.

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Even though the victims weren’t hurt, Asanovich and her mother remain stunned and shaken.

“My mom turned a light on and that’s when they got scared and jumped over a fence and that’s when I got [back home],” Asanovich said. “But I think, ‘What if the window was open and they actually got in? What were they going to do to her?’”

Asanovich believes the suspects may be local high school kids who knew that her daughter was out of town in Hawaii.

Police have not confirmed a motive behind the attempted burglary, but Asanovich hopes the teens will learn their lesson before attempting to commit future crimes.

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Los Angeles, Ca

Los Angeles County businesses endangered child workers, must pay nearly $400K

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Los Angeles County businesses endangered child workers, must pay nearly $400K

A pair of Los Angeles County businesses must pay hundreds of thousands of dollars for putting juvenile employees as young as 15 into dangerous situations and working them in excess of hours and times allowed by law.

A&J Meats of the City of Industry and The Right Hire of Downey “jointly employed and endangered children as young as 15 by tasking them to use sharp knives, allowing them to work inside freezers and coolers, and to scheduling them to work at times not permitted by law, all in violation of federal child labor regulations,” the U.S. Department of Labor said in a news release.

Specific violations include:

  • Working children for more than three hours on school days
  • Working children past 7 p.m. on school days
  • Working children more than 18 hours in a week while school is in session

The companies must repay more than $327,000 in profits and pay almost $63,000 in fines. The businesses and A&J owner Priscilla Helen Castillo also must submit to annual Fair Labor Standards Act training and be independently monitored for violations for three years.

“A&J Meats and The Right Hire knowingly endangered these children’s safety and put their companies’ profits before the well-being of these minors,” Western Regional Solicitor of Labor Marc Pilotin said in the release. “These employers egregiously violated federal law and now, both have learned about the serious consequences for those who so callously expose children to harm.” 

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If you have questions or concerns about possible workplace violations, you can call 1-866-4-US-WAGE (487-9243) regardless of where you are from. The department can speak with callers in more than 200 languages.

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Los Angeles, Ca

L.A. Sheriff’s outreach program offering support for homeless population

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L.A. Sheriff’s outreach program offering support for homeless population

In Rosemead, deputies with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, in cooperation with several other county agencies, have hit the streets to connect unhoused people with shelter and services.  

Deputies from LASD’s Temple Station and the department’s Homeless Outreach Services Team have been engaged in the initiative alongside L.A. County Probation and the Los Angeles Center for Drug and Alcohol Abuse in an effort to provide “comprehensive support, including mental health services, substance abuse treatment, and housing assistance,” an LASD news release stated.  

“No one gets better in a homeless encampment,” Lt. Bill Kitchin told KTLA’s John Fenoglio. “From day one, their health deteriorates while they are there.”  

These specially trained deputies, along with their partner agencies, are working to get homeless residents help if they want it.  

At a Rosemead homeless encampment, Deputy Chris Lewis pointed out the dangerous living conditions.  

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“Somebody actually lives over there on that mattress,” he said. “You can actually see the condition that this encampment is in. It is not a safe environment for anybody to be staying in.”  

There are those, however, living on the streets, like one man identified only as Gilbert, who do not want the help.  

L.A. deputy at the scene of a homeless encampment in Rosemead on June 24, 2024. (KTLA)

“I’d rather struggle out here,” he said. “I don’t like shelters. I don’t even like neighbors. It’s a little too loose for me.”  

According to the latest data from the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, there are 75,518 unhoused residents in L.A. County. In Rosemead, city officials say there’s been a spike in crime committed by the unhoused population.  

“We want to make sure that they understand that we’re here to try to support them while also supporting our communities,” Deputy Lewis explained. 

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A 17-year LASD veteran, Lewis says he and his team usually encounter homeless residents struggling with mental health and substance abuse problems.  

During Monday’s outreach, the deputy met a man named Donald, who had been sleeping in the park. When Lewis offered help, Donald took it.  

L.A. Sheriff's program offering services to homeless
L.A. deputy at the scene of a homeless encampment in Rosemead on June 24, 2024. (KTLA)

“That’s definitely going to be a success story,” he said. “You could see that Donald was already letting you know he had some mental health concerns. Us coming out here and connecting with him, we were able to get him some of those mental health resources.”  

Despite the hurdles, Deputy Lewis said the homeless outreach has been truly rewarding.  

“The truth is that we are given the opportunity and the time to truly help our communities out,” he explained. “You’ll see when we go out and talk to these people. We spend a little more time with them to find out what is their major concern and what can do to help them.”  

Lewis added that the reward is seeing a person go from living on the streets to getting housing or reconnecting with their family and getting back to life.  

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