Passerby’s Suspicions Lead to Capture of Burglary Suspect

CORONA — An alert passerby helped a police officer snag a burglary suspect who was allegedly making off with electronic equipment and a handgun stolen from an Aspen Street home Friday morning.

Officer Jerry Paxton was patrolling an east Corona neighborhood where police had received reports of a recent rash of residential burglaries when he noticed a suspicious car parked on Fullerton Avenue, Sgt. Roy VanderKallen said.

The passerby, an unidentified woman, pointed to a man walking along Aspen Street carrying a large, green plastic bag.

When the man saw Paxton, he began walking quickly away, dropped the bag and reached toward his waistline with his right hand, VanderKallen said.

Paxton caught and arrested the man, 24-year-old Esequiel Loera of Corona, and found a .22-caliber semiautomatic pistol in a case in his waistband and a loaded ammunition clip in his pocket, VanderKallen said.

The green bag contained a video cassette recorder, a 6-inch television, a 35-millimeter camera and lens and other camera equipment, VanderKallen said. The handgun, case and two ammunition clips were also stolen from the house, he said.

Police estimated the total value of the items recovered at $1,680.

Loera was booked on a burglary charge and held on $5,000 bail at the Corona Police Department, VanderKallen said.