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“In towns and cities... there is no more important institution than the local paper.”
Warren Buffett
By Brian Hews
When questioned by HMG– CN, lead investigator in raid becomes angry and says, “I don’t like your line of questioning.”
Last week Hews Media Group Community News published an article in print and online about the Bellflower Sheriff’s obtaining a search warrant under questionable circumstances to raid a house in Norwalk.
The raid occurred Thursday, November 6 at 4 PM when fully armored and fully armed sheriff’s went into E. Garcia’s (name withheld) Norwalk house pointing guns at his head, yelling for Garcia to get on the ground, and subsequently telling him to put his arms up get out of the house.
At the time Garcia was asleep with his 18- month old daughter who has a severe seizure disorder.
The daughter was left with the female sheriff who brought the daughter out later.
Investigators then searched Garcia’s house and found nothing.
Now the lead investigator in the raid, Dan Machuca, is disputing what Garcia told HMG-CN and the information that was published in the article.
After the raid, both Garcia and his wife told HMG-CN that the sheriff’s were from Bellflower and that lead investigator Machuca told them they had been watching the house for two months.
But in an interview with HMG-CN, Machuca denied the statement from the Garcia’s and said “we drove by the house a couple times.”
“No way,” said Garcia, “he said we’ve been driving by for two months. He told us we know your kids, we know where you go, my wife and I will swear on it.”
When told of the Garcia’s statements, Machuca became angry and belligerent on the phone telling HMG-CN, “I do not like your line of questioning.”
When HMG-CN asked for the search warrant Machuca replied, “go down to the courthouse, get a court order, and get it yourself.”
HMG-CN then asked Muchuca how he was able to obtain a search warrant if he never saw the people he was after, he replied, “two people who were recently paroled were using Garcia’s address as their mailing address and they had it on there drivers license, pretty much all their IDs had that address.”
Machuca went on to say, “we just went into clear the house to see if the two people were there.”
When asked if search warrants are routinely issued using this type of evidence and where no suspects are identified, an angry Machuca replied, “that’s the way it’s done, and once again I don’t like your line of questioning.”
HMG–CN has obtained a one-page document titled “Search Warrant Notice of Service” from Garcia. The document was given to Garcia after the sheriff’s searched the premises.
The document stated, “ These premises have been searched by Peace Officers of the Century OSS (Operation Safe Streets) pursuant to a search warrant issued on November 5, 2014 by Hon. Judge Tipton of the Superior Court of the Bellflower Judicial District.
The document looked like a form that requires simply filling in the blanks. The ‘Century OSS,’ ‘Judge Tipton,’ and ‘Bellflower’ were typed on the document, while the dates were handwritten.
Also handwritten on the bottom of the document was the address of Garcia’s house.
“That seems strange to me,” an indignant Garcia said, “ I asked them for the entire search warrant and they did not give it to me.”
The OSS website states, “Operation Safe Streets Bureau (OSS) provides Gang Suppression and Investigation support to the jurisdictions served by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.”
Bellflower Judge Tipton resides in Cerritos, where HMG-CN is headquartered.
The warrant went on to state, “the search was conducted on November 6, the list of property seized pursuant to the search warrant is attached.”
After reading the first article online Lakewood Sheriff’s Captain Keith Swenson
called HMG-CN and said, “we had nothing to do with this I can’t find any paperwork on this raid, I don’t think it was Bellflower Sheriff’s.”
Swenson said he would call HMG-CN back if he found any further information. No call has been returned at the time of publication.
That was little solace for Garcia who commented, “we tried to call the investigator after the incident to get the search warrant but he never called us back. I again ask how they were able to get the search warrant if they admittedly were watching my house for two months and none of the people that they were looking for came to the house? The parolees illegally used my address and I am penalized for it? These cops were a bunch of thugs, they treated my daughter, who has severe seizure disorder very badly, and now they are lying about what they said and avoiding questions from this newspaper, this is wrong.”
Garcia went on to say, “I want to see the evidence that the people they were after were using my address, and if they won’t give it to me, I will go down to the Bellflower Courthouse and get it.”