Dirty Diaper Dumper Suspect Stopped, Questioned in Laguna Beach

On Tuesday night, Laguna Beach police detectives identified and interviewed a man who is suspected in a series of soiled diaper dumps in Laguna Beach and Newport Beach.

Officers received a break in the case Monday evening, according to a release issued by Capt. Jason Kravetz of the LBPD.

For over a year, there have been numerous reported incidents of cars running over bags of dirty diapers in the area—primarily in Newport Beach—with the contents spewing disgustingly across vehicle tires and undercarriages. Two of the more recent incidents took place in early September in Newport Beach, and another just last week in Corona del Mar.

In May, the dookie-dumping spread to North Laguna, with diapers found deposited across the southbound lanes of North Coast Highway between Irvine Cove and Emerald Bay.

"Monday, while setting up for a surveillance along North Coast Highway, detectives came across freshly-dumped bags of diapers which had not been struck by vehicles," said Kravetz. "One of the officers looked through the material and found an envelope attached to a diaper. The envelope was addressed to a medical office in Fullerton. One of the employees of this office was found to live in the Newport Coast area."

Tuesday, according to Kravetz, officers conducted further surveillance work on the Newport Coast home in question, and waited for any movement of two cars—a Bentley and a Lexus—which were seen parked in the garage. At 10:45 p.m., a 67-year-old male suspect got into the Lexus and drove away.

"He was followed into Laguna Beach and watched as he made an abrupt u-turn near Irvine Cove and headed northbound," Kravetz said. "Detectives decided to initiate a traffic stop near Reef Point and Coast Highway. Upon approaching the vehicle, they immediately saw a large bag of used diapers in the passenger seat."

The man was questioned, but not arrested, however.

"We did not catch him in the act of dumping the diapers," said Kravetz. "Even though he possessed the evidence, it is a misdemeanor crime, and we must have a citizen’s arrest or see him do it."

LBPD detectives are working with Newport Beach police investigators on the case, in order to combine all of the incidents and present them to the Orange County District Attorney’s Office for prosecution of Health and Safety Code 117555.