Crime & Safety

NoHo Standoff Suspect Pleads Not Guilty to Stalking, Threatening Ex-Girlfriend

Nolan Perez, 41, is held in lieu of $1 million bail.

A man — who was arrested Monday after a police chase from El Sereno to North Hollywood and an hours-long standoff that ended after officers fired tear gas into a house — pleaded not guilty today to charges that he stalked and made criminal threats against an ex-girlfriend.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Renee Korn ordered Nolan Perez, 41, held in lieu of $1 million bail while awaiting his next court appearance June 24.

Perez was charged Monday with one felony count of stalking and six felony counts of making criminal threats. The criminal complaint alleges he stalked the woman between May 19 and last Friday and that he made criminal threats on six occasions between May 19 and June 4.

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Perez has not yet been charged in connection with the chase.

The pursuit began after Perez was spotted about 10:15 a.m. Monday in the 4900 block of Axtell Street in the El Sereno area. Los Angeles police Cmdr. Andrew Smith said Perez was suspected of making criminal threats at the same location, and a warrant had been issued for his arrest.

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When the suspect was spotted by officers, he fled, driving along various surface streets near downtown Los Angeles, then onto the Hollywood (101), Pasadena (110), Golden State (5) and Hollywood (170) freeways, Smith said.

At least once during the chase, the suspect pointed a rifle out of the car window, but it was unclear if he actually fired any shots, according to police.

About 11:30 a.m., he came to a stop on a North Hollywood surface street and — armed with a rifle — got out of the car and ran into a neighborhood in the 11500 block of Hartsook Street. At one point, he climbed onto a rooftop and appeared to rest before climbing down, eventually making his way inside a home, in a drama that was covered live by television news crews hovering overhead.

Police set up a blocks-wide perimeter around the home, evacuating neighbors and forcing lockdowns at a handful of area campuses, include Oakwood School.

Around 3 p.m., police fired tear gas canisters into the residence where the suspect was holed up. After a few minutes, he came out -- unarmed -- and dropped face-down on the ground. SWAT officers quickly moved in and took him into custody.

The criminal complaint alleges that Perez has prior convictions for domestic violence in 2011, being a felon in possession of a firearm in 2007 and negligent discharge of a firearm in 1997.

— City News Service


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