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Police: Burglary Crew Caught In The Act By Alert Neighbor Calling 911

GARDENA (CBSLA.com) — Three men suspected in burglaries targeting residences in the Gardena area were in custody Tuesday, police said.

The men were identified as Ronald Dwayne Taylor, 21, of Hawthorne; Bryan Marquis Blackmon, 20, of Los Angeles; and Louis Charles Pinkney Jr., 19, of Hawthorne, Gardena police said.

Authorities said officers responded to the 2600 block of West 152nd Street for reports of a burglary in progress around 5 p.m. Monday.

A neighbor noticed two men climbing through a window at a home and called 911 while continuing to watch the men leave with the residents' property, officials said.

Gardena officers said they arrived within two minutes and detained the three men, two of whom were waiting in their vehicle, while the third acted as a lookout.

Officials said they recovered stolen property from of the vehicle.

During a late-night search warrant investigation, detectives found pawn slips, jewelry and additional evidence in the mens' residences connecting them to burglaries in other South Bay cities, officials said.

Gardena police said officers discovered that the men are documented gang members and are believed to have been working as a burglary crew, targeting residences in Gardena, Hawthorne and other surrounding communities.

Police are encouraging residents to watch for suspicious activity and to call 911 if anything unusual occurs.

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