INGLEWOOD – The Inglewood Police Department (IPD) is continuing its search of two hawks that were stolen from SoFi Stadium during the Los Angeles Rams game held on September 28.
According to IPD, the two hawks were inside of cages in the back of an unattended UTV with keys in the ignition.
The UTV was located five miles away in South Los Angeles near the intersection of Century Blvd. and Avalon Blvd. The two hawks were nowhere to be found but two dead quails were located inside the two-seater Kawasaki Mule utility task vehicle. The quails are used to feed the hawks.
“These hawks are used during the games by a falconer in order to deter other birds in the area.”
According to Inglewood Mayor James T. Butts, an animal cruelty investigation is underway.
“It looked like somebody took it [UTV] and used it to transport themselves to the area of Century and Avalon, and I think they became aware of the birds somewhere along the way, and they released them,” Butts said. “So the best thing to do is to, one, make sure that your equipment is secured, and I don’t think you’ll see this happen again.”
The department released a photo of the suspect, described as a Black man wearing a black shirt/jacket with a white stripe down the shoulder, black pants and black shoes.
Butts says there are no tracking devices on the hawks. Anyone with information is asked to contact the IPD Watch Commander at 310-412-5206. Anonymous tips can be made to Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477 or at lacrimestoppers.org.