SoFi Stadium Hawks Still Missing, 2 Other Birds Found Dead

INGLEWOOD, CA — A search was continuing Tuesday for two hawks that were stolen from a SoFi Stadium parking lot during Sunday's Rams game when an unknown suspect swiped a utility vehicle carrying the birds.

The vehicle has since turned up, as have two dead quails used to feed the hawks — but the birds remain missing, according to reports.

The theft occurred around 2:20 p.m. from the lake area outside SoFi, when a suspect hopped into a Kawasaki Mule utility task vehicle and drove off the property. The key had been left inside the vehicle, which is similar to a heavy-duty golf cart, according to the Inglewood Police Department.

"Affixed to the bed of the UTV were two (brown) Harris' Hawks housed in green containers," police said in a statement. "These hawks are used during the games by a falconer in order to deter other birds in the area."

The suspect was described as a man wearing a black shirt and a jacket with a white stripe doing down the shoulder, along with black pants and black shoes.

Inglewood Mayor James Butts told ABC 7 Tuesday afternoon that the stolen UTV was found around 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at Avalon and Century boulevards in South Los Angeles, but the hawks were not with the vehicle.

Charles Cogger, the owner of the birds — named Alice and Bubba, told NBC 4 earlier Tuesday that he had been informed by police that the hawks were found dead with the truck. But he was later told that the dead birds were actually a pair of quails that are used to feed the hawks.

Seagulls are drawn to venues like SoFi Stadium because of access to water and leftover food. The presence of predatory birds help scare them away, LAist reported.

As of that 2023 article, the falconer at SoFi was using six to eight Harris's hawks of various ages for the task.

Anyone with any information about the incident is asked to contact the Inglewood Police Department at 310-412-5206.

City News Service contributed to this report.