This story was updated on Nov. 30

By Mary O’KEEFE

There have been several incidents in the Glendale and Montrose areas that have been receiving the attention of the public and local leaders.
At Harvest Market on Sunday a man refused to wear a mask, which is an LA County Public Health Order, and subject to fines from $400 to $2,000 from the City of Glendale. According to officials at the Harvest Market, the man was aggressive and threatened to sue the Harvest Market for requiring the face covering to be worn. A vendor was in fear that the man would become violent if asked to wear a mask.
The man accused those working at the Harvest Market of harassing him, even though they offered to shop for him while he remained outside the market.
Harvest Market officials called Glendale police; however, officers did not arrive before the man left the Market. Harvest Market officials and some of the vendors are concerned he may return to the Market and his actions will become increasingly aggressive.
The GPD officers said there was a “critical incident” occurring near Brand Boulevard at the time of the Market incident and that was the reason they did not respond quickly to Montrose. The incident occurred in the 1100 block of Brand Boulevard regarding several gunshots heard at a hotel.
Officers eventually did respond to the Harvest Market call but much later as most units had responded to downtown Glendale.
“Typically officers do respond and our response rates are short,” said Sgt. Zeigler, Crime Impact Team with GPD.
He added GPD has a Mask Enforcement Detail that is citywide and has officers on call seven days a week.
Later that night in the 3400 block of Mary Ann Street in La Crescenta/Glendale a witness saw a man walking down the street at around 11 p.m. His actions appeared suspicious. The witness then saw the man pry open the trunk of a neighbor’s vehicle and called Glendale police. When GPD officers arrived they searched for the suspect but was unable to find him. They did, however, find the vehicle the suspect drove into the neighborhood and learned it had been reported stolen. This investigation is ongoing.
There was an armed robbery on Oct. 18 at the Montrose Trader Joe’s. This was one of many Trader Joe’s robberies throughout LA County. The robbery occurred at about 9 p.m. Witnesses described the suspect as a Black male, 5’8” tall with a thin build wearing a black hoodie, black face mask and black jeans. The suspect approached an employee, opened a bag revealing a handgun and told two employees to open the safe. They opened the safe; the suspect took the gun from the bag and ordered the employees to put the safe’s contents into the bag. They did and the suspect fled the area. The investigation is ongoing.
Jeremy’s Cafe in the 3000 block of Honolulu Avenue was burglarized on Nov. 4. Patty’s Closet in the Montrose Shopping Park was burglarized in the early morning hours of Nov. 14. According to Sgt. Christian Hauptmann, spokesman for GPD, the front window of the store was shattered, the interior had been ransacked and several items were stolen. Surveillance footage shows a suspect, described as a male wearing a hooded sweater, pants, black and white shoes and an LA Dodgers hat. The front window was broken and the suspect entered the business about 4:45 a.m. He opened the cash register, took money and went to other areas taking items.
There have also been reports of counterfeit bills circulating in the Montrose Shopping Park.
Sgt. Zeigler said that officers are in the area patrolling.
“We do have a strong police presence in the [Montrose/far north Glendale] command area,” Zeigler said.