Detectives arrested three 19-year-old men on April 29 after they cut the locks on two bicycles outside the Evans Adult School, at Sunset Boulevard and Figueroa Street.

“Witnesses called police after they saw the trio ride up on bikes, cut the locks, then ride away, guiding the two stolen bikes beside them,” said Lt. Paul Vernon, who oversees detective operations for downtown.

At that moment, an off-duty LAPD officer, who was working security at the school, started chasing the thieves, followed closely by the detectives, who soon caught the thieves.

The detectives returned the two stolen bikes to their rightful owners, who were both students at the school.  At the police station, the detectives found a driver’s license number etched on one of the thieves’ own bicycles.

The driver’s license number returned to a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputy who reported that bicycle stolen in 2004 from Whittier, California.  That bicycle was valued at $800.  Detectives will hold the other bike to determine if it too was stolen.

Josue Bran, Jessy Guerrero, and Hugo Ascencio were booked for Grand Theft, and bail was set at $20,000 each.  All three men reside in Hollywood and attend Hollywood High School.