Santa Monica police arrested two homeless men for setting up two different illegal campsites in the early morning hours of Friday, April 5.
At 4:56 am officers of the Santa Monica Police Department were on routine patrol when they chanced upon a camping site that had been established by an individual in front of 734 Santa Monica Boulevard.
The camper was asleep when the officers arrived.
The officers noted there were many items belonging to the individual that had been strewn around the ground around the site, as well as a shopping cart that was full of more belongings.
The officers woke up the camper and arrested him.
This 54-year-old man was charged with illegal camping, and appropriation of lost property.
He was also discovered to have a total of three outstanding warrants. Bail was set at $4,250.
In an earlier incident, at 3:25 am, officers who were on patrol in the 1200 block of Seventh Street had come across another illegal camper, and this individual was also arrested and charged with illegal camping.
This man was unable to provide any form of identification, however officers used their skills to determine who he was, and this 42-year-old man, again, of no fixed abode, was later granted bail of $500.
Editor’s Note: These reports are part of a regular police coverage series entitled “Alert Police Blotter” (APB), which injects some minor editorial into certain police activities in Santa Monica. Not all of the Mirror’s coverage of incidents involving police are portrayed in this manner.