On Friday afternoon, July 3, 2015, suspects were seen moving back and forth between a condominium and an idling vehicle in the fire lane on Tall Oak in Irvine. When the vehicle left the area suddenly, witnesses alerted the Irvine Police Department with descriptions of the three men and their vehicle. Officers arrived to discover the front door of a residence had been pried and the contents of the home had been ransacked. Included in the missing property was a large amount of US currency, Japanese currency and a designer handbag.

Irvine Police Detectives immediately began an investigation into the rental vehicle driven by the suspects. One suspect, David McNeal (3-27-74), was arrested later the same day when he returned the vehicle to a rental car agency in the city of Pomona. At the time of his arrest, he was in possession of US, Japanese and Iraqi currency.  A search warrant was executed at his nearby Pomona residence where additional foreign currency, Rolex watches, nine rifles and two handguns were discovered. The investigation into the recovered property is ongoing; however, preliminarily at least two of the handguns were confirmed to have been stolen in previous residential burglaries in Los Angeles County.

The search for the other involved suspects is ongoing.

Suspect #1: Male, black, approximately 55-60 years old, 5'10" tall, heavyset, wearing dark clothing. He walks with an unusual gate and uses a cane.

Suspect #2: Male, black, 30-35 years old, wearing a dark hat and dark saggy jeans.

McNeal was booked into the Orange County Jail for the felony charges of residential burglary and grand theft (California Penal Code 459 and 487).

Anyone with information about this incident or the two outstanding associates of McNeal should contact Detective Metevia at 949-724-7276 or ametevia@cityofirvine.org. 

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