The front of Relevance at 7454 Melrose Ave. was boarded after two
suspects drove a pickup truck through the facade. (photo by Edwin Folven)

Detectives with the Los Angeles Police Department’s Wilshire Division are investigating separate burglaries on May 16 and May 20 in which suspects drove vehicles through the front of stores and stole merchandise valued thousands of dollars.

The burglary on May 16 occurred at approximately 4:50 a.m. at SoleStage, a footwear store at 455 N. Fairfax Ave. Security cameras captured footage of a vehicle crashing through the front of the store. Four suspects can be seen ransacking and wrapping merchandise in a blanket before dragging it to a waiting vehicle and fleeing. Lt. Mark Ro, with the LAPD’s Wilshire Division, said the suspects were wearing hooted sweatshirts, masks and gloves, and police have been unable to get a good description. The vehicle that crashed into the store – a Hyundai Elantra – was left at the scene. Police determined it was stolen in the city of Lennox, Ro said. He added that police believe there were two getaway vehicles involved, and one was possible a dark-colored Tesla sedan.

“We’ll process the vehicle left at the scene for DNA and prints,” he said. “We do have video of the incident.”

The second burglary occurred on May 20 at approximately 3:47 a.m. at Relevance, a luxury goods store at 7454 Melrose Ave. Authorities said two suspects crashed a dark-colored four-door pickup through the front of the store, exited the vehicle and stole merchandise. The men then reentered the pickup, possibly a Ford or Chevrolet, and drove away from the scene. Police have not located the vehicle, LAPD spokesman Jeff Lee said.

Investigators do not know if the two crimes are related. The stores were closed when the burglaries occurred and no injuries were reported. The exact value of the stolen merchandise is still being tabulated. The suspects stole luxury items from the stores and the loss is estimated to be thousands of dollars.

Community members in the Melrose area were outraged by the burglaries and hope they do not signal a new trend.

“We’ve had a relatively quiet period in our area and it’s troubling, in light of the struggles that businesses in the area have had,” said Peter Nichols, co-founder of Melrose Action, a neighborhood advocacy organization. “It’s bad news. When they drive a vehicle into a building, it’s very troubling. Many of these stores are barely hanging on and the community can’t face another increase in crime.”

Anyone with information about the burglaries is urged to call the Wilshire Division at (213)922-8205 or (213)473-0476. During weekends and off-hours, call the LAPD’s hotline at (877)LAPD247.