While many people are preparing to send and receive travel luggage, a Southern California man is asking residents to be careful after valuable luggage was stolen right outside his front door.
On Nov. 14, Lawndale resident John Shinn was tracking the shipment of his expensive laptop when he received a notification that it had been delivered. Apparently, he wasn’t the only one tracking the package.
When Singh went to check on the front of his home near the intersection of Prairie Avenue and Manhattan Beach Boulevard, the package was nowhere to be found.
Singh told KTLA’s Kimberly Chen that he saw the UPS driver and followed him down the street, stopping to ask about the missing package.
“Then he said, ‘Somebody showed me their ID,'” Singh explained.
Sure enough, Shin later found footage of the exchange. The video shows a stranger stopping the UPS driver from getting out of the truck with Singh’s package. The man showed the driver what was on his cell phone (possibly a fake ID) and the driver handed him his luggage.
Surveillance camera footage shows a suspected package thief in Southern California showing a possible fake ID to a delivery driver and making off with an expensive laptop. November 2024. (Viewer photo) Surveillance footage shows a suspected package thief in Southern California showing a delivery driver a possible fake ID and making off with an expensive laptop. November 2024. (Viewer photo) Surveillance footage shows a suspected package thief in Southern California showing a delivery driver a possible fake ID and making off with an expensive laptop. November 2024. (Viewer photo) Surveillance footage shows a suspected package thief in Southern California showing a delivery driver a possible fake ID and making off with an expensive laptop. November 2024. (Viewer photo) Surveillance footage shows a suspected package thief in Southern California showing a delivery driver a possible fake ID and making off with an expensive laptop. November 2024. (Irvine Police Department) A suspected package thief in Southern California was captured on surveillance footage showing a delivery driver a possible fake ID and making off with an expensive laptop. November 2024. (Viewer photo)
“This guy has a criminal mind,” Singh said. “And obviously he had inside information. We know there was a laptop in this package.”
A few days after the incident, Irvine police issued an alert after releasing a video of a man believed to be the same suspect stealing a package containing a MacBook Pro.
The video, shot on November 18, shows a man with glasses and a beard, wearing the same black pants and white shirt. He experienced the same pattern, showing the delivery driver what could be a fake ID and making off with the package.
Shin is convinced that they are the same person.
“It’s already been reported to retailers and credit card companies, but I reported it online to the FBI, but UPS wasn’t very helpful,” Singh said. “When I contacted them, they said, ‘The package has been delivered.'”
Singh said he wanted to warn others to think twice about having expensive items delivered to their homes, as many people expect deliveries during the holidays.
“If you have an expensive package delivered to your home, you may be able to have it delivered to a UPS station, a FedEx office, or pick it up directly from the store,” Shin advised. “It’s safer that way.”
KTLA reached out to a UPS representative who said they would not comment on the incident, but customers can choose to ship directly to the UPS Store or sign up to receive email alerts letting them know when their package is expected to be delivered. He also said that it is possible. That’s what Shin said.
Singh said he has requested a refund for the product, but the process is currently pending.
Police did not immediately release the identities of the suspects believed to be involved in both incidents.
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