POLICE BRIEFS

Andrew Wainer

A rare and expensive rose-breasted cockatoo is missing from a Fountain

Valley pet store after it was stolen Sunday by a Westminster man, police

said.

James Dinh Troung, 23, was arrested Sunday for allegedly stealing Chloe,

a talkative 9-month-old pink and gray cockatoo valued at $2,000, Fountain

Valley Police Sgt. Jim Perry said.

Troung tried to steal the bird from the Petco store by smuggling it in a

dog food container he bought earlier, but the defiant Chloe stuck its

head out of the container as Troung left the store.

When questioned about the hidden cockatoo, Troung told a store clerk that

it belonged to him.

The clerk said that when he ran outside to try and stop Troung, the

suspect tried to run him down with his car.

Troung was arrested outside his home a short time later and charged with

grand theft and assault with a deadly weapon for trying to run over the

store employee.

He was released on $50,000 bail.

Chloe is still missing.

Perry said that Troung is not cooperating with police efforts to recover

the animal.

Don Cowan, a spokesman for Petco, said Chloe is easily recognizable by

her bright color and her habit of saying her name repeatedly when

excited.

Anyone with information about the cockatoo is asked to contact Fountain

Valley Police at (714) 593-4485

Little Caesar’s robbed

The Little Caesar’s Pizza restaurant, at 16927 Bushard St., was robbed of

about $100 by an armed man Saturday, Fountain Valley police said.

Restaurant manager Lorenzo Villenor said he was just about to close for

the night when the man entered through the back door with a “military

style weapon,” according to police.

The man ordered two 16-year-old employees to lie on the ground while the

45-year-old Villenor gave him the money. The man then fled the crime

scene.

Villenor said he was scared by the assault but was glad that no one was

injured.

Anyone with information concerning the robbery is asked to call the

Fountain Valley Police Department at (714) 593-4485.

Three restaurants robbed

Huntington Beach Police are looking for a suspect in the armed robbery of

three area restaurants this week.

The spree started on Sunday night when a man ordered a meal at Taco Bell

on Garfield Avenue and then demanded cash, police said.

He left with $300.

On Tuesday morning, a man police believe is the same person robbed Norm’s

Restaurant on Beach Boulevard. Police say he stole $400.

Later that day the suspect was thwarted when he attempted a heist at

Denny’s Restaurant on Edinger Avenue.

Police say the man approached a Denny’s employee from behind and put a

gun in his back.

The man than asked the employee in Spanish “Who’s in charge?”

The employee then indicated the manager and the man pointed the gun at

him.

After the manager of the store refused to open the cash register, the man

quickly fled.

The suspect is described as 19 or 20 years old, about 5 feet 4 inches

tall. He has a medium build, black hair and a mustache.

The Huntington Beach Police Department is asking for help from the

public.

Call (714) 375-5066 with any information.