Dozens arrested at street takeovers in L.A.

Officials seize eight abandoned vehicles and a flamethrower after crackdowns.

Police arrested three dozen people Thursday night at illegal street takeovers in and around Los Angeles, including large gatherings in the San Fernando Valley, according to authorities who impounded multiple vehicles.

Street takeovers often involve a pack of cars blocking an intersection where drivers perform dangerous maneuvers with their vehicles.

Roughly 150 people gathered at Roscoe Boulevard and Coldwater Canyon Avenue in the Sun Valley neighborhood, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

LAPD Sgt. Jodie McGee of the Valley Traffic Division told Fox 11 News that the participants often wreak havoc in communities.

“They like to make videos of it,” McGee said. “But the problem is, people are getting injured and killed by these guys … doing the doughnuts. They lose control, they hit the crowd — the spectators that are watching what’s going on. And then what happens, as soon as they hit somebody, they take off. So now you have a hit and run, and if a person’s injured, it could be a felony. So that’s why we’re here. We’re trying to curtail the activity.”

The LAPD impounded eight cars after people abandoned them when officers arrived. The LAPD and California Highway Patrol worked together to respond to the illegal takeover, and both agencies made multiple arrests. Police said they recovered a flamethrower at the Sun Valley takeover, as reported by KTLA-TV.

The news station reports that there was a separate street takeover in Compton, where police impounded several vehicles. The L.A. County Sheriff’s Department did not immediately have information about the incident.

KABC-TV said police responded to a takeover in Granada Hills just before 11:20 p.m. Nearly 20 cars were impounded, and 20 people were cited, while four were arrested by authorities.