Illegal Aliens Helping Fuel Explosive Growth In Transnational Retail Theft Rings

The cash harvested from the billions in stolen goods is underwriting the distribution of drugs, weapons, even terrorism, experts say.

HOA complaint about brown grass led to Florida woman being arrested and jailed for 7 days



A Florida woman says she was arrested and jailed for seven days over HOA complaints that began with brown grass in her front yard.

Irena Green said the harrowing journey began when an HOA management company sent her a complaint about the grass in front of her home in Riverview, which is near Tampa.

'There was no bond. So I couldn't even go home to my family. I sat in there for seven days.'

Green told WFTS-TV that the HOA told her to reseed her lawn or install sod to respond to the violation, but she said the problem was partly caused by shade from a large tree as well as watering restrictions in the city from drought conditions.

"If you drive around my neighborhood, you'll see there's plenty of yards not up to par," Green said.

The HOA then hit her with other minor violations, including a small dent in her garage, a dirty mailbox, and having a commercial cargo van. WFTS noted that other residents had similar vans.

Green failed to respond to a request for mediation, so the HOA company filed a lawsuit against her. When she appeared in court, her handwritten response was rejected by the judge as well as the HOA company. Green said she was given instructions on how to fix the complaints.

"My grass had to be brung up to par. He said you can get seed, you can do something, but you've got 30 days to get it corrected. So I said fine. He said, 'If it's not done in 30 days, you're gonna go to jail,'" Green said.

She said she sold the van, cleaned up the mailbox, and bought grass seed and watered the lawn to comply.

However, she failed to show up in court for the next hearing in August. She said she did not receive a notice about the hearing and had tried to get information about it.

“I was supposed to receive documentation. Nothing was sent to my home. And I reached out to the courthouse several times to try to find out when was my court date,” she explained.

Because she failed to show up, the judge held her in contempt of court and issued a warrant for her arrest. She was pulled over in late May by an officer as she was driving her daughter to a cheerleader practice. That's when she found out about the warrant for her arrest.

She was arrested and placed in jail. Then she got even worse news.

"There was no bond. So I couldn't even go home to my family. I sat in there for seven days. Seven days in the jailhouse like a criminal," she said.

The warrant for her arrest was made at the request of Francis Friscia, an attorney for the HOA.

RELATED: Entire HOA board resigns after outrage over vote ordering each homeowner pay $60K assessment in Florida

  

Green says a paralegal relative asked for an emergency hearing to request her release and provided pictures of the lawn. She said she was shackled from head to feet during the hearing. The attorney for the HOA opposed her release because they wanted the entire lawn resodded.

Instead, she was released the next day.

Video of the WFTS interview with Green can be viewed on the news report on their YouTube channel.

The attorney released a lengthy statement that said in part that Green was at fault for not responding to legal requests.

"Ms. Green received notices of violations. She disregarded them. Legal action was filed by the association after she failed to accept the offer to mediate the matter, pre-suit, as is required before a lawsuit can be filed," he said in part.

Green says she was humiliated over very minor issues and thinks HOAs have too much power.

"It makes me feel horrible. I work hard to buy this home for me and my kids in a better neighborhood and environment, and to be taken to jail and to be treated like that for brown grass at my own home ... that's horrible," she said.

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Man in wheelchair grabs gun during home invasion — then shocks crook with rare physical feat



Police in Albuquerque, New Mexico, told Blaze News that a male was suspected of having committed a string of crimes Monday morning.

Police said Michael Salas broke into a home, led police on a car chase, and then fled on foot before arriving at an apartment on the southeast side of the city, KRQE-TV reported.

'Please don't touch me. Please get out of my house.'

Suddenly, Salas barged into the unit — and encountered wheelchair-bound Anthony Nichogi, who was in the residence with his young son, the station said.

Nichogi's wife had left the front door unlocked when she departed, KRQE said, adding that Salas burst inside only a minute later.

"I was in fear for my life and my son," Nichogi told the station, adding that Salas "reached for me, and I told him, 'Please don't touch me. Please get out of my house.'"

KRQE said Salas has a long rap sheet full of burglary arrests and convictions.

RELATED: Shocking video: Boys, just 7 and 9 years old, wrestle for loaded gun — and 1 points it at deputies during tense standoff

 Michael Salas. Image source: Metropolitan Detention Center, Bernalillo Co., N.M.

Burglaries are nothing new for Nichogi, who told the station his neighborhood has suffered many of them — and he was prepared: "You know, I have video footage of all the five years' worth of incidents, and I'm expecting it."

Nichogi repeatedly told Salas to get out, KRQE said, adding that he soon motored on his electric wheelchair to the bedroom to get mace.

But it wouldn't be so easy.

"I turned my chair around, and as I went into the bedroom to go unlock it and retrieve it, he followed me into the bedroom," Nichogi explained to the station.

With that, Nichogi opted for a more powerful means of self-defense. He instead grabbed his gun, KRQE said.

And that wasn't all.

Describing what happened next as a rush of adrenaline, Nichogi told the station he performed a rare physical feat: He got up from his wheelchair and commanded Salas to leave.

Indeed, video shows a clearly unnerved Salas putting up his hands and retreating to the front door as Nichogi points a gun at him and walks after him, even following Salas out of the apartment.

"I never expected to have to defend my home like that," Nichogi added to KRQE. "This is a first for me."

The medical condition that necessitates his wheelchair use is not clear.

RELATED: 'The Left is completely out of control': New Mexico GOP headquarters torched in 'horrific attack'

 

Police told the station that officers had been following Salas after deploying a GPS dart on his car and then pursued him on foot.

Police added to KRQE that Salas was found on a roof next door and arrested.

According to jail information police provided to Blaze News, Salas on Wednesday remained incarcerated in Bernalillo County's Metropolitan Detention Center on no bail. Salas, 40, was charged with aggravated burglary with a deadly weapon, burglary, reckless driving, and resisting, evading, or obstructing an officer. He also has a warrant for burglary from an automobile.

Police told KRQE that Salas had an accomplice with him — Christina Herrera — who is facing a residential burglary charge.

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Black man blamed racism for arson at his home that killed 2 people — until an accomplice allegedly told police it was a scam



A Texas man who went to the media to denounce racist vandalism at his home was arrested by police for allegedly burning down the home and killing two people, including one of his relatives.

An unsealed federal indictment detailed the charges against Mario Raynard Roberson, who had blamed racial hatred for vandalism at his Huntsville home in 2023. Later, that home burned to the ground, leading many to blame racism and call for a federal investigation.

'People are being terrible because of the hatred in their heart.'

That federal investigation has led to numerous charges against Roberson, including one that carries a sentence of life in prison.

Roberson went to the media when racist vandalism was spray-painted onto his home after a heated neighborhood association meeting where members voted to ban the use of homes as short-term rentals in May 2023. He claimed that someone at the meeting had threatened him.

"People are being terrible because of the hatred in their heart," said Roberson at the time.

The graffiti read, "We don't like your kind," and ended with a racial epithet. Roberson, who was described as black in a KTRK-TV report, said he would not leave the neighborhood and would stand up to the alleged racism instead.

At the time Roberson also claimed that someone fired a gunshot at him through a window in his house, narrowly missing him.

'Racism, power-hungriness, money has gotten us to this place.'

Only one month later in June, the home burned to the ground.

Two people were killed in the home, and a witness said that the witness had seen a man running out of the home while fully engulfed in flames before stripping his clothes and driving away.

Roberson again blamed racism.

"Racism, power-hungriness, money has gotten us to this place," Roberson said to KTRK at the time.

That led to some organizations demanding that the Department of Justice investigate the incidents. In a June 2023 KRIV-TV report, a spokesperson from CAIR, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, says that the group demanded that the FBI open an investigation into the matter as a possible hate crime.

RELATED: Democrat who blamed GOP and Trump for 'Hinduphobic' messages has been arrested by Texas Rangers for alleged race hoax

 

Roberson was arrested in Nov. 2023, as previously reported by Blaze News, after an investigation pointed to him as the arsonist.

On Thursday, a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Southern District of Texas said that the man had been indicted on July 1 on 12 counts related to the fire.

Prosecutors said that Roberson hired three men, one of whom was a relative, to commit the arson so that he could make an insurance claim on his property with State Farm Insurance. However, something went wrong, and two of the three alleged arsonists died in the flames, prosecutors believe.

According to KTRK, police found the man who had driven away from the house fire after he crashed his truck into a ditch. Police body-camera video obtained by the station showed that he told police he was brought out for an insurance scam.

"I'm telling you. I'm from Houston. This dude, he told me to bring him out here to Huntsville," the man reportedly said. "He said somebody wants to do a numbers job on a house."

Police said a "numbers job" refers to insurance scams.

"Whoever is doing it, he knows the man with the house," said the man. "A numbers job or something. That's all I know."

Roberson denied the claims, but KTRK said it also found several civil lawsuits against him, mostly related to money.

The most serious charge Roberson faces is conspiracy to commit arson against a property used in interstate or foreign commerce resulting in death, which carries a sentence of life in prison.

RELATED: Biracial woman said four white males lit her on fire in racist attack — prosecutors found no evidence that it happened

  

Roberson also faces charges ranging from wire fraud to conspiracy to commit arson and conspiracy to violate the Travel Act.

“The defendant is alleged to have orchestrated a scheme to collect an insurance payout through a purported racially motivated arson, which led to two deaths,” said U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei. “Now that he is in federal custody, he will answer these charges and, if found guilty, be held accountable for the death of these two men.”

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Ex-teacher accused of grooming, sexually abusing teen boy; mother rips suspect as 'sick, twisted, calculating sex offender'



A former elementary school teacher in South Carolina is accused of engaging in a "prolonged and inappropriate relationship" with a teenage boy, according to police.

Multiple jurisdictions have been investigating the allegations.

'Looking back, it sickens me knowing Nikki manipulated our son and our family.'

The Anderson County Sheriff's Office charged Nicole Ballew Callaham, 33, with three counts of criminal sexual conduct with a minor and one count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. The Greenville Police Department hit Callaham with eight counts of criminal sexual conduct with a minor and four counts of unlawful conduct toward a child, as the alleged victim attended school there. In addition, the Clemson City Police Department has been conducting a parallel investigation.

The Anderson School District Five stated that Callaham had been a kindergarten teacher for the Homeland Park Primary School from 2017 until her May 21 resignation.

The Anderson County Sheriff's Office said in a statement that an investigation into Callaham was launched in May 2025 after police discovered evidence of misconduct against a teenage boy.

The Greenville Police Department added in a press release, "The investigation revealed that Callaham engaged in an inappropriate and unlawful relationship with a 14-year-old male."

Police said the alleged misconduct began in 2021 when the boy was 14 and continued for at least two years.

Investigators said Callaham "engaged in grooming behavior toward the boy during his early teenage years."

"The relationship intensified as she reportedly signed the student out of school, transported him to practices, and served as a supervisor for after-school activities," the Anderson County Sheriff's Office stated.

Detectives said Callaham engaged in a "prolonged pattern of abuse, which was corroborated by search warrants and ongoing cooperation with the victim's family."

Citing arrest warrants, WHNS-TV reported that Callaham provided the alleged victim with marijuana, nicotine, and alcohol. The arrest warrants also accused Callaham of engaging in sexual intercourse with the teen boy at a Greenville hotel and a downtown Greenville parking garage.

Callaham "voluntarily surrendered herself" Thursday morning to the Anderson County Detention Center, the sheriff's office said. The next day, Callaham was booked at the Greenville County Detention Center.

During Callaham's bond hearing in Anderson County last week, a detective read a letter in court from the mother of the alleged victim, according to WYFF-TV. The mother claimed that her family first met Callaham while she was serving as the director of musical theater productions for a play in which her son performed.

RELATED: Florida teacher accused of 'disturbing' sexual misconduct against student — including in classroom just hours before arrest

  

"Our son, who was an innocent, naive 14-year-old boy, had worked hard for years in hopes of earning a lead role. Our son was finally given an opportunity by Nikki, and we were beyond thrilled for him," the mother wrote.

The mother said she and her husband "trusted her completely with our son, as she seemed to be a wonderful mentor to our son and other young actors and actresses by investing in them."

"Looking back, it sickens me knowing Nikki manipulated our son and our family," the mother stressed. "She was waiting on this opportunity, and she found the perfect victim and family to prey on."

The letter stated, "She saw our son's innocence and that he was very easily manipulated. ... She saw a family who had a lot of love and kindness to share with those who needed it."

The mother accused Callaham of having a "plan to groom our son" and added that Callaham referred to her as her "best friend."

"However, Nikki was abusing our trust and abusing our young teenage son right under our noses," she wrote.

The mother claimed that Callaham "led a double life" and put up a "facade" to "blind us from her evil, sick intentions."

The mother added that Callaham is a "sick, twisted, calculating sex offender."

The mother also said she witnessed behaviors around her son that were "questionable and inappropriate," and her family instructed her to cease all contact with the teen.

The mother alleged that Callaham continued to contact her son through social media and purchased an Xbox video game system in order to interact with him.

WHSV-TV reported that the alleged victim — identified as Grant Strickland — spoke out following Callaham's bond hearing.

RELATED: Married ex-teacher hit with 52 additional child sex charges related to multiple alleged trysts with 15-year-old male student

 

The station said he decided to come forward as an 18-year-old after time spent processing the trauma he said he experienced.

Strickland told WSPA-TV that confronting Callaham was like a "weight lifted off his shoulders." He noted that he was a "child" when the alleged misconduct occurred.

"All I really want the public to know is that that was a traumatic event. I'm here to fight, and I'm not going to back down," Strickland said following the hearing, according to WRDW-TV. "I think more awareness needs to be brought to things like this. And just because I'm a man doesn't mean that it should be shunned away. Because I was a child."

Strickland added, "I would love to bring more awareness to show that this happens, and it happens a lot, and it's not just to women. It's to men too, and it happens to young children, and it's gotta stop."

Strickland continued, "I would never want somebody to go through what I went through, because I don't really think that most people would be strong enough to survive it. Because I almost didn't."

WSAV-TV reported that at Callaham's bond hearing in Greenville on Monday, she was seen smiling at people in the courtroom, including her family and fiancé.

RELATED: Florida middle school teacher sent nude photo, engaged in 'lewd conduct' with 14-year-old student: Police

  

Callaham's lawyer asked for leniency since his client is pregnant and needs prenatal care.

"Miss Callaham is eight to nine weeks pregnant," attorney William Epps III said.

Her bond was set at $120,000 in Greenville County, and her bond was set at $40,000 in Anderson County.

WRDW reported that as part of her bond requirements, Callaham will be placed under house arrest until she secures employment. A judge also ordered Callaham to not have contact with the alleged victim; in addition, she must undergo a psychological evaluation and will be required to wear a GPS monitor.

The Anderson County Sheriff's Office stated that the Anderson School District Five is aware of the investigation and charges made against Callaham.

Blaze News reached out to the Anderson School District Five for comment but did not receive an immediate response.

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Security video shows workers fighting off man in bikini trying to rob donut shop



California police released security video from a bizarre incident where a man wearing a bikini and a sun hat tried to rob a donut shop in Los Angeles.

The incident unfolded at a Winchell's donut shop in the Harvard Heights area on May 28. Video obtained by KMPH-TV shows the bikini-clad man in the kitchen pointing what looks like a gun while the workers toss objects at him, including cash.

At one point, the officer fires a shot at the man but apparently misses him.

As he leans down to pick up the cash, they ram him with a cart.

Surveillance video from outside the store shows one worker grabbing a chair and throwing it at the man before he flees from the scene.

Police said they were later able to find the man in an alley of a nearby apartment complex in July. Body camera video shows the confrontation as an officer tries to get the man to stand down.

At one point, the officer fires a shot at the man but apparently misses him.

RELATED: Homeless man allegedly devours victim's face after fight at bus stop near Las Vegas Strip, told police he was possessed

  

Officers were able to subdue him through the use of a taser and arrested the man. They said they were able to recover a knife as well as an airsoft replica handgun from the area.

They later identified him as 41-year-old Christopher Hall. He was charged with robbery and assault with a deadly weapon.

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Transgender sex offender accused of trying to kidnap boy at elementary school gets good news from DA



On April 19, 2024, families of students at Black Forest Hills Elementary School in Aurora, Colorado, got a message from the school saying, "This afternoon during fifth grade recess, an unidentified adult male entered the field, approached a group of students, engaged them briefly, and then exited property," KDVR-TV reported.

Police said it "appeared that this person attempted to grab a young boy" and then left the school grounds before officers arrived, the station said.

Galligan had been in and out of jail for 12 years, and previous charges against him included assault, burglary, and sex crimes, his family told KUSA-TV last year.

In a follow-up story, KDVR said an 11-year-old boy called for help when the suspect grabbed him and approached three other students.

RELATED: Child molesters can now be marched in front of firing squads in Idaho

  

"They are the ones who fought off this guy, ran away from him, called stranger danger. And if they had not done that, I wouldn't have my son with me in my own home," the 11-year-old's mother, Miranda Ayala, added to the station.

Later, cops found someone nearby who matched the suspect's description, KDVR said: 33-year-old Solomon Galligan, who was arrested that same day on one count of attempted kidnapping. Police also said Galligan was a sex offender.

RELATED: Chicago Mayor Johnson passes buck to feds over illegal alien sex offender living unchecked in city: 'That's their job'

  

Indeed, Galligan was convicted of nonconsensual sexual contact in 2011, KMGH-TV noted. In addition, KCNC-TV reported after his arrest last year that Galligan claimed to identify as a woman and had been in the process of transitioning for several years.

Galligan had been in and out of jail for 12 years, and previous charges against him included assault, burglary, and sex crimes, his family told KUSA-TV last year.

But after all that, a doctor last month found Galligan incompetent to stand trial in the 2024 attempted kidnapping case, Eric Ross — a spokesman for the DA's office — told KUSA in a new story. Therefore, "by state statute, we are required to dismiss charges in the case," Ross added to KUSA.

RELATED: 'Burn in hell': Teacher who raped 12-year-old student, had his baby found guilty of 11 felonies for sexual abuse of 5 boys

  

However, the DA's office said Galligan won't be back on the streets when the charges are dropped, KMGH reported.

Ross told KMGH that "the defendant will be civilly committed for mental health treatment. Contrary to what has been reported, the defendant is not being released out in the public."

State court records indicate Galligan has had four criminal cases dismissed — and in every case, the issue of competency was raised, KMGH reported, adding that a hearing for Galligan is expected to be scheduled for later in July.

'When a defendant is found incompetent to proceed, we are legally obligated to dismiss charges. Our hands are tied based on the findings of competency.'

In response, Aurora City Councilwoman Danielle Jurinsky told the New York Post that an "effort" to "recall" Democrat DA Amy Padden "is well under way and will begin this week."

"The conduct of the 18th DA over the past six months is beyond deplorable," Jurinsky, a Republican, added to the Post. "This is simply the icing on the cake."

Jurinsky also told the paper that "the progressive attitude will not be tolerated. While certain state laws highlight deeper issues in the state of Colorado, Amy Padden will be recalled for her part in not upholding the laws and punishing criminals."

The DA's office on Tuesday didn't immediately respond to Blaze News' request for comment regarding Jurinsky's words to the Post about Padden.

Jurinsky last week made no secret of her desire to oust the DA after Padden offered a plea deal to an illegal alien teenager who fatally struck a 24-year-old woman while driving 90 miles per hour, the Denver Gazette said. Indeed, the offer of only probation and community service for the unlicensed teen elicited outrage. Kaitlyn Weaver was taken off life support two days after last July's collision.

Padden said Jurinsky's statements about the Weaver case "misrepresented" the 18th Judicial District's work, according to the Gazette.

As for the Galligan case, the Post added that the DA's office said in a statement, "We have not yet filed the formal motion to dismiss. We have until the end of the month to do so. The defendant is being civilly committed into mental health treatment. ... When a defendant is found incompetent to proceed, we are legally obligated to dismiss charges. Our hands are tied based on the findings of competency. However, they are not being released to the public."

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Sanctuary cities fail — but Karen Bass keeps pushing the lie



In yet another low point for Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass (D), she marched into the drug-ridden chaos of MacArthur Park — press corps in tow — to join a protest last week against federal immigration enforcement. She demanded that agents leave the area immediately. The stunt accomplished nothing beyond generating a photo op and pushing the false narrative that Bass stood for her city’s “honor.”

In reality, her appearance exposed a familiar truth: Sanctuary city mayors like Bass offer no real solutions to the crises they helped create. Worse, they routinely display ignorance of how federalism actually works.

The 2024 election was a clear rebuke of sanctuary city policies and the broader anti-borders agenda that Bass represents.

The Supremacy Clause — Article VI, Clause 2 of the Constitution — makes clear that federal law overrides state and local laws when they conflict. Immigration policy, long upheld by the courts as a federal responsibility, lies squarely within Washington’s authority. In Arizona v. United States (2012), the Supreme Court reaffirmed that states and localities cannot pursue policies that obstruct federal immigration enforcement.

By declaring Los Angeles a sanctuary city and demanding that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents stand down, Bass didn’t just express a policy preference. She tried to seize power that the Constitution explicitly grants to the federal government.

This isn’t a symbolic squabble. Immigration enforcement involves national security, public safety, and international diplomacy. Local governments lack both the authority and the expertise to handle these matters on their own.

Sanctuary cities in crisis

The leftist mayor’s public campaign against ICE is especially galling considering that the agency’s presence in Los Angeles stems directly from the city’s sanctuary policies. For years, Los Angeles has limited cooperation with federal immigration authorities, refusing to honor ICE detainers and withholding information when illegal aliens are released from custody.

Bass and her predecessors created the very conditions that now require federal intervention. Far from “overstepping” in L.A., ICE is responding to a city government that harbors people who violate federal immigration law, including those with serious criminal records.

RELATED: Karen Bass says LA anti-ICE riots ‘never happened’ as the media reported them

  Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

The consequences of sanctuary policies have been devastating. Los Angeles, once a beacon of prosperity and opportunity, is struggling with high crime rates, strained public services, and a ballooning budget deficit.

According to the Los Angeles Police Department, violent crime in the city increased by 11.6% from 2020 to 2022, with homicides spiking to levels not seen in over a decade. The city’s homeless population, which includes a significant number of illegal aliens, has surged to more than 75,000, overwhelming shelters and defiling public spaces.

Sanctuary policies worsen the crisis by cutting off cooperation with federal immigration authorities, giving criminal elements more room to operate unchecked. The burden on public resources grows heavier by the day. Los Angeles expects a $400 million budget shortfall in 2025, yet city leaders continue pouring funds into programs for illegal aliens, including legal aid and housing. These decisions reflect an ideological agenda that leaves taxpaying citizens footing the bill for rising crime and collapsing public services.

Bass’ posture isn’t just another act of left-wing defiance. It’s a warning sign of a national policy failure. Cities like San Francisco, Chicago, and New York have followed the same sanctuary script, and the results are as predictable as they are destructive: higher crime, strained infrastructure, and a public rapidly losing faith in its leaders.

In New York City, for instance, the influx of immigrants has pushed the city to the brink, with Mayor Eric Adams admitting in 2023 that the crisis could “destroy” the city. New York is no outlier. It is what happens when a city abandons order for lawlessness.

Enough is enough

Americans have had enough. The 2024 presidential election was a clear rebuke of sanctuary city policies and the broader anti-borders agenda that Bass represents. The L.A. mayor’s defiance of ICE is not just a legal overreach; it is a rejection of the democratic will of the American people, who have made it clear that they want safe streets, secure borders, and accountable leaders.

Instead of confronting the crime, homelessness, and fiscal crises fueled by her city’s policies, Bass chose to cling to a failed ideology. Her call for ICE to leave is not a defense of compassion but a surrender to anarchy. Americans deserve leaders who respect the Constitution rather than cling to a discredited sanctuary city experiment.

Homeless man makes 'horrific' discovery near dumpster at Los Angeles parking lot, police say



California police are investigating a gruesome discovery made by a homeless person near a dumpster on Saturday morning in the Panorama City neighborhood of Los Angeles.

Officers responded to a call regarding a dead body at about 7 a.m. at an address on the 8200 block of Van Nuys Boulevard. They said the body appeared to be that of a 3-to-5-year-old boy, according to an LAPD spokesperson.

'I don't know the cause of death of this individual. ... But no one deserves to be handled in this manner.'

Police did not indicate in what condition the body was found but said the death was suspicious.

"This is horrific, and it impacts every single one of us that comes to these scenes, everyone at home who hears about these scenes," LAPD Det. Meghan Aguilar said to KABC-TV.

"We've got mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, anyone — you don't have to be one of those to know how horrific this is," she added. "I don't know the cause of death of this individual. Again, that will be up to the coroner to determine. But no one deserves to be handled in this manner."

RELATED: Homeless woman left to die inside impounded vehicle after getting injured by drunk driver, lawsuit says

  

Police said they are interviewing witnesses from the area and looking for footage captured by nearby surveillance cameras.

The county coroner will determine the cause of death for the family.

"To be left out and discovered by a stranger is absolutely horrible, and the detectives on this case are from our Abused Child Unit," Aguilar continued. "This is all they deal with, and they are passionate about that, and I have no doubt that they will identify and hold the person responsible for this."

Residents of the neighborhood set up a small memorial of candles and stuffed animals for the boy, in the hope that justice will be served.

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