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Camp Pendleton Marine Arrested on Charges Alleging Cyberstalking Young Women in Sextortion Campaign

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Camp Pendleton Marine Arrested on Charges Alleging Cyberstalking Young Women in Sextortion Campaign

LOS ANGELES – An active-duty Marine stationed at Camp Pendleton was arrested Feb. 8, on charges that he cyberstalked multiple young women with ties to his former hometown of Torrance in a “sextortion” campaign.

Johao Miguel Chavarri, 25, of Oceanside, was expected to make his initial appearance Feb. 9 in United States District Court in downtown Los Angeles.

According to the criminal complaint, from 2019 through 2021, Chavarri, using the online alias “Michael Frito,” created and used numerous online accounts to repeatedly stalk, harass, and threaten women who would not give in to his demands that, among other things, they send him nude, sexually explicit or otherwise compromising photos and videos of themselves. This is commonly referred to as sextortion. The complaint alleges, in some cases, his cyberstalking, threats and sextortion demands continued for over a year.

According to the complaint, Chavarri threatened multiple times that, if his victims refused to comply with his demands, he would publish sexually explicit photos and videos of the victims online or on well-known pornography websites. He also allegedly threatened to distribute the photos or videos to the victims’ boyfriends, friends, families or employers, whom he would often identify by name.

Chavarri allegedly also created fake social media accounts mimicking some of the victims’ names and sent harassing messages to some of the victims’ friends and family members.

Chavarri is charged with stalking. If convicted, he faces a statutory maximum sentence of five years in federal prison.

The FBI is investigating the case, with assistance from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.

Anyone who believes they are a victim in this case or is aware of a victim in this case is urged to contact the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office at, 310-477-6565.

Sheriff Won’t Comply With County’s Enforcement of Employees’ Vaccination

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Sheriff Won’t Comply With County’s Enforcement of Employees’ Vaccination

Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva Feb. 8, said he won’t comply with a mandate requiring deputies be vaccinated against COVID-19 or face termination. The Sheriff claims thousands could leave the department and that will lead to more crime.

LA County Board of Supervisor Janice Hahn issued a rebuke to Villanueva’s defiance to the order that was approved last summer by the Board, stating, “Villanueva is putting both his deputies and the public they come face-to-face with every day at unnecessary risk.”

Villanueva, who faces a reelection challenge next year, has defied other health orders during the pandemic, like not enforcing a mandate requiring vaccinated and unvaccinated people wear masks at indoor public settings.

The Los Angeles Police Department last week reported 70% of its officers and civil employees were fully vaccinated. Under the city’s policy, LAPD employees who don’t want to get vaccinated have an option to get tested twice per week at their own expense.

Los Angeles with a populace of 10 million people has the largest sheriff’s department in the country, with about 10,000 sworn deputies and 5,800 civilian employees. More than 3,000 deputies and other department employees still have to register their vaccination status with the county. Those who registered and reported their status as unvaccinated include more than 3,100 deputies and 1,000 civilians who could be subject to termination, Villanueva said, adding that the 3,100 figure is nearly the size of the department’s patrol operations.

Villanueva has said he is vaccinated but believes others should make their own choice and not be forced to get shots. The sheriff has the power to terminate employees. With Villanueva refusing to follow the policy it’s not clear whether anyone in his department would lose their jobs.

Despite the Oct. 1 deadline, the county only now is sending notices to those who have failed to register and get vaccinated.

Los Angeles International Airport Police Chief Cecil Rhambo, who is running against Villanueva, said the mandate should be followed.

Supervisor Kathryn Barger said in a statement, it’s unfortunate that Villanueva won’t discuss a solution.

“I am committed to supporting and listening to our sheriff’s rank and file to get to the bottom of what barriers and obstacles they are facing so we can reach a resolution,” she said.

Supervisor Barger subsequently released another statement Feb. 9 in response to the Board’s vote to have the county’s Department of Human Resources assume the authority to enforce County employees’ compliance with vaccination requirements, which you can find below.

“This action is in response to an individual – Sheriff Villanueva, to be specific. To change a policy over one individual isn’t appropriate.

“Our county’s COVID-19 employee vaccine mandate is an important part of our commitment to keep the public safe from a deadly virus – but not at the expense of decreasing services we are obligated to provide.

Our Board should not seek an approach that erodes the management responsibilities of our county departments’ leaders nor results in the mass firing of essential workers. We still have an invaluable opportunity to broker solutions by working with labor union leaders – we have not exhausted that course of action.

Victims, their loved ones and the public at large want elected leaders to address the crime surges impacting our county. Now is the time to do all we can do and explore every possible option so that we can keep our residents safe.”

Port of Long Beach Prepares for Year of Transformation

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Port of Long Beach Prepares for Year of Transformation

Transformation is needed across the supply chain in order to accommodate the growth and future opportunities in international trade, Port of Long Beach Executive Director Mario Cordero said Feb. 9, during a virtual State of the Port address.

Technology, partnerships and a continued shift toward 24-hour operations will aid the entire goods movement industry from the docks to doorsteps, Cordero said during the second virtual State of the Port address – available for viewing now at www.polb.com/stateoftheport.

“We continue to debate the same issues year after year, while the operational model remains status quo – never changing,” Cordero said. “The test is not in how many containers we move but in how we transform and build a port that benefits everyone.”

A soft launch is scheduled later this month for the “Supply Chain Information Highway,” a data-sharing tool that will maximize efficiency by tracking cargo across various modes of transportation. The port will continue to enhance on-dock rail to accelerate cargo movement, through improved rail infrastructure and partnerships.

Additionally, the Port of Long Beach will advocate for 24-hour operations for the entire supply chain – shipping terminals, warehouses, trucking and other critical links.

The port ended 2021 with 9,384,368 twenty-foot equivalent units processed, up 15.7% from the previous record of more than 8.11 million TEUs moved in 2020. The port press release said significant increase in cargo was driven by evolving consumer spending habits during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Key projects completed in 2021 include the final phase of the Long Beach Container Terminal, the greenest, most technologically advanced terminal in North America, along with the adjacent Fireboat Station No. 15.

Over the next decade, the Port plans to invest in rail improvements that will improve efficiency, reduce truck trips and lessen environmental impacts amid increases in cargo. Construction begins in 2023 on the port’s rail program centerpiece, the Pier B On-Dock Rail Support Facility, which will allow longer trains to be created more frequently.

Looking ahead, the port plans to transform the drayage truck fleet to zero-emissions by 2035, funded by a Clean Truck Fund rate starting in April. Terminal operators are also doing their part by deploying zero-emission cranes, vehicles and yard equipment.

As Omicron Surge Declines, Public Health Details Post-Surge Mitigation Strategies

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As Omicron Surge Declines, Public Health Details Post-Surge Mitigation Strategies

With the Omicron surge continuing its decline, Public Health officials caution that “post-surge” does not indicate an end to the pandemic but rather that COVID-19 metrics are stabilizing across the county.

For the week ending Feb. 7, LA County reported an average of 9,800 daily cases, representing a 47% decrease from the average of 18,617 daily cases reported the previous week. Similarly, the daily average case rate decreased to 102 positive cases per 100,000 residents for the week ending Feb. 7, compared to 193 positive cases per 100,000 residents for the prior week, representing a 47% decline in the average daily case rate. The seven-day average daily test positivity rate also declined from 8% to 5%, a 40% decline from the week prior.

In addition to these case and test positivity trends, hospital admissions for COVID-positive patients in LA County have also declined. For the week ending Feb. 7, the seven-day average of daily hospital admissions decreased by 111 admissions from the prior week to 310 admissions; this represents a 26% decline in County hospital admissions. Today there are 2,702 patients with COVID hospitalized.

Public Health will consider LA County to be “post-surge” when COVID daily hospitalizations drop below 2,500 for seven consecutive days.

Once LA County enters post surge, masking will no longer be required in outdoor spaces at outdoor Mega Events or in outdoor spaces at childcare facilities and K-12 schools. The masking requirement at indoor establishments will continue until:

  • LA County has two consecutive weeks at or below Moderate Transmission (10-49.99 new cases/100,000 persons in the past seven days), as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or
  • Vaccines have been available for children under age five for eight weeks; and
  • No emerging reports of significantly circulating new variants of concern that threaten vaccine effectiveness.

Per state regulations, indoor masking at K-12 schools, childcare facilities, youth settings, healthcare settings, correctional facilities, homeless and emergency shelters, and cooling centers is still required.

Additionally, per federal regulations, masking when riding public transit and in transportation is still required.

Employers must also continue to provide high quality and well-fitting masks to workers who are in close contact with others until transmission is lower. Vaccination verification will also continue at mega events and indoor sections of bars, lounges, nightclubs, wineries, breweries, and distilleries.

Board of Supervisors Call for End to Discrimination Against Gay Men in Blood Donations

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Board of Supervisors Call for End to Discrimination Against Gay Men in Blood Donations

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Feb. 8, called on the Food and Drug Administration or FDA to reverse its discriminatory blood donor policy and allow gay and bisexual men to give blood.

Hahn’s motion, co-authored with Supervisor Sheila Kuehl, directs a five-signature letter to be sent to acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock urging the reversal of restrictions that prevent sexually active gay and bisexual men from becoming blood donors.

The blood donor policy requires gay or bisexual men to abstain from sex for a minimum of three months before they can donate blood. The roots of the discriminatory policy date back to the HIV/AIDS crisis of the 1980s, in an era when HIV was poorly understood by scientists and doctors. In 1985, the FDA established a lifetime ban on donations by men who have sex with men. In 2015, the lifetime ban was changed to include anyone who had sex with men in the last 12 months. In April 2020, 12 months was reduced to 3 months.

For years, the American Medical Association has been calling on the FDA to remove this discriminatory ban and treat all potential blood donors equally. Today, every unit of blood is rigorously tested to detect any trace of HIV, syphilis, hepatitis, West Nile virus or other blood-borne diseases.

There is gaining momentum to end this discriminatory blood donor policy during the current national blood shortage crisis. Members of the House Oversight Committee wrote a letter on Jan. 13 to the FDA asking for “immediate action.” On Jan. 18, the Biden administration voiced commitment to ensuring that the blood donor policy “is based on science, not fiction or stigma.” The Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest LGBTQ+ civil rights organization, added to calls for change saying the current policy is “outdated” and “does not reflect the state of the science.”

Family Seeks Public’s Help To Solve The Murder of Ricardo Trujillo; $15K Reward

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Family Seeks Public’s Help To Solve The Murder of Ricardo Trujillo; $15K Reward

On Feb. 7, Homicide Bureau detectives from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department held a press conference to announce a $10,000 reward in exchange for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for the murder of Ricardo Trujillo Ramirez. Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly Mitchell sponsored a $10K reward and, during the press conference, Colonel Jack E. Thomas III, United States Cadet Corps, added $5K to the reward.

On Sept. 24, 2021, about 11:50 p.m., 16 year-old Ricardo Trujillo Ramirez was leaving a party with his friends near the 1900 block of Pine Street in the city of Compton, when they were confronted by a group of individuals and a large fight took place. One of the suspects pulled out a gun and shot Ricardo in the upper torso. Although paramedics arrived at the location rather quickly, Ricardo sadly succumbed to his injuries.

Ricardo was a junior at Narbonne High School in Harbor City. The Lomita resident enjoyed playing soccer, swimming and fishing. Ricardo’s dream was to be a drone pilot for the Air Force and he was on the right path, as he was a member of the ROTC and the Junior Navy Program for almost eight years.

This generous contribution by Mr. Thomas increased the reward from $10,000 to $15,000 in exchange for any information that will lead to those responsible for the murder of Ricardo.

If you have information about Ricardo’s senseless murder, contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500, or anonymously at 800-222-8477, or http://lacrimestoppers.org/.

The 2022 LA Homeless Count Is In 14 Days

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The 2022 LA Homeless Count Is In 14 Days

Los Angeles County is two weeks out from the 2022 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count, when committed volunteers spread out across Los Angeles County in the nation’s largest census of people experiencing homelessness.

LA needs every single one of you to make this year’s Homeless Count possible. Please join others in your neighborhood by volunteering to count unsheltered neighbors in your community. Your efforts will help provide funding and direct resources to end homelessness for thousands of people. The county is asking that everyone signs up as part of a trusted team to limit the amount of interaction amongst people during this pandemic.

Details: www.theycountwillyou.org/?utm_campaign=two_weeks

My Recycled Life — Feed the World

Lyn Jensen
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My Recycled Life — Feed the World

Disabled by dementia, my mother clung to her grocery-shopping as long as possible, until the very last weeks of her life. I think it was her most precious activity — even though she insisted she didn’t like shopping. She may have had an idea that when her grocery-shopping was done, so was she — and she fought ‘til the bitter end.

For the most part, I tolerated her irrational conduct, reasoning she was the person who was coping with the end of her own life. She’d open packages and have tantrums in markets. She refused all urging to have someone else shop or get food delivered. I dealt with her hysteria about “no food” in her house, no matter how stuffed her refrigerator, freezer, cabinets and countertops got. Forcing her into a care facility was the only thing that altered her behavior.

When she died, she left behind a large enough stockpile to feed, if not the world, at least a large extended family. I couldn’t just eat it all myself, not with my food allergies and other dietary restrictions. I persuaded a friend with a degree in Home Economics to help with the sorting. Whipped cream without a cap went in the trash. Mystery liquid, probably a vinaigrette I couldn’t eat anyway, got poured down the drain.

When the trashing was over, the remaining stockpile still filled several shelves, including what was either long past its shelf date or that I was allergic to. The cats got some “expired” chicken and tuna. Much of what was left I spent considerable time sorting, bagging and delivering to food pantries and rescue shelters where I’d donated food and drink before.

I found such places accepted some things you normally wouldn’t think they would — frozen food, seasonings, open packages, baked goods and “expired” packaged and canned food. Maybe they accepted it because they knew me as someone who had a history of supporting their work. Maybe they smiled and thanked me, then discarded my donation once I was gone — but at least I’d made an attempt to keep food out of the waste stream.

For one such example, the family wine collection was so large it overflowed its rack onto shelves and countertops. I took one bag of bottles to a friendly food pantry, showed them to a volunteer, and asked, “Do you accept these?”

“We’ll see what we can do,” he said, and eagerly took what was offered. I sometimes wonder who drank that wine.

Some other bottles, I sold via estate sale, others became gifts. Still a rack-full of wine remains, and I’m allergic to wine. My dietary restrictions rule out white sugar and flour, too, but plenty of baking supplies still crowd the kitchen. I think that means I can bake plenty of wine bread for charity.

Sharon Landers Steps Down As Carson City Manager

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Sharon Landers Steps Down As Carson City Manager

City Manager Sharon Landers will step down from her post on March 1, 2022 after almost three years with the City of Carson to retake the helm of her consulting company that works in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors.

“Carson has benefited tremendously because of Sharon’s leadership,” Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes said. “She brought a high level of energy, enthusiasm and expertise to our city. I especially want to thank her for the work she did to improve the city’s financial position. Under Sharon’s leadership we have achieved our first structurally balanced budget in over a decade and created a funding mechanism for the city to pay its unfunded pension liability that is expected to save the city more than $47 million over the next 20 years.”

City Manager Landers said that she was especially proud of her role in achieving many quality-of-life improvements for Carson residents. She helped strengthen the city’s affordable housing portfolio for middle-income families and professionals; better aligned the approval of private development projects with the council’s vision of the future of Carson; championed increasing investment into the city’s infrastructure to improve street and sidewalk maintenance, updated the city’s technology, including bringing Wi-Fi to City facilities.

“Working with the Disaster Council, Sharon was also involved in the city’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and other emergencies including the Dominguez Channel,” said Mayor Davis-Holmes. “In addition, she helped shepherd the creation of our landmark Town & Gown Promise with CSU Dominguez Hills; and laid the groundwork with our legislative delegation to secure state and federal earmarks for city projects. Working with Assemblyman Gipson, we now have an additional $6 million for improvements to Carriage Crest Park secured through the State budget.”

“On behalf of the City Council and the City of Carson, we are grateful for her time with us and wish Sharon all the best,” said Mayor Davis-Holmes.

Vacant San Pedro Courthouse to be Demolished to Make Way for Apartments and Food Hall

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Vacant San Pedro Courthouse to be Demolished to Make Way for Apartments and Food Hall

SAN PEDRO—On the morning of Feb. 8, demolition will begin on the long-vacant San Pedro Courthouse to make way for a County-led effort to build a new mixed-use community including affordable apartments and expansive ground-floor retail space. Supervisor Janice Hahn and developer Genton Cockrum Partners will hold a short press conference immediately before demolition begins to discuss the project.

“This is a project that we have been looking forward to for a long time,” said Supervisor Hahn. “There has been a lot of work happening behind the scenes with Genton Cockrum Partners, but the demolition means the public is going to see the progress and that is exciting. This project is in the heart of our downtown, so it was important that we got this right. We are building apartments that people can afford, bringing more people to downtown, and building a space everyone can enjoy.”

Demolition is expected to take up to 50 days. Construction will begin this Fall.

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