Police News: Boy Escapes Possible Abductor, L.B. Officer Pleads to DUI

 A Long Beach police officer was sentenced Friday to 20 days of community service for his guilty plea to misdemeanor drunken driving while off duty last year in Westminster.

Officer Eddie Sanchez, 30, was also ordered to complete three months of first- offender alcohol-awareness classes and to attend a panel sponsored by Mothers Against Drunk Driving in which victims of drunk drivers tell their stories, according to the Orange County District Attorney's Office. Sanchez was also put on three years of informal probation.

On May 24, 2010, Sanchez left a Long Beach bar about 4:30 p.m. and got into his 2003 Nissan Altima to visit a friend in Stanton, according to prosecutors. Sanchez was weaving before stopping at a red light in Garden Grove and idled there even after the light changed to green, the D.A. said in a statement.

Several drivers behind him honked and one motorist walked up to his car, reached inside and turned off the ignition, according to the District Attorney's Office. Sanchez's blood-alcohol level was measured at .16, twice the legal limit, the prosecutors maintained.

It was not immediately clear whether Sanchez remains employed by the city although it is a misdemeanor.

Editor's Note: We are running this crime story out of nearby Los Alamitos about a failed kidnapping attempt because it occurred .9-tenths of a mile from Oak Middle School, where the popular Friday Night Lights flag football league in which many Belmont Shore-Naples children compete.

Los Alamitos police are on the hunt for a man who is suspected of attempting to kidnap an 11-year-old boy on the 4000 block of Green Avenue at 5 p.m. Friday just a block away from the ongoing Los Alamitos Family Festival at Laurel Park.

The child was able to escape unharmed, but the would-be abductor also got away, said police. A reverse 9-1-1 call went out to all residences in the area, and a perimeter was established, but no suspect has been apprehended yet, said Los Alamitos Sgt. Sharon Kerbow.

The suspect is described as a 30- to 40-year-old white male, with brown hair and a mustache. He was wearing dark-colored pants, black work boots and a blue windbreaker, and was last seen walking east on Green Avenue and South on Noel Street.

“Because of the carnival, there were a lot of people out, but no one saw anything,” said Kerbow. “We are confident that if the suspect is still in the area, we will get him in custody.”

Throughout the night, boisterous groups of kids and families with popcorn and cotton candy came and went from the Los Alamitos Family Festival along Green Avenue.

“It’s real scary,” said Kerry Lopez as she walked her kids home from the carnival. “There are a lot of families and kids that live around here.”

Celina Gomez has lived in the neighborhood for 17 years, and she’s always felt safe, she said.

“People leave their windows open all the time, and I walk my dog late at night,” she said. “I don’t think I am going to do that anymore.”

The alleged assault spooked many who live in the row of apartments nearby.

“I think it was the little boy from a couple doors down,” said Henny Tanod. “Everyday he gets on his bike and says, ‘Bye, mom. I am going to the park.’ Los Alamitos is so safe. You never think something like this would happen here.”

Police haven’t ruled out whether the suspect lives in the area or whether he came for the festival.

Police are encouraging children to have adult supervision or to stay in groups while playing outside. Anyone with information about the incident is encouraged to call the police 562-594-7232. A sketch of the suspect will be released by police early next week.