LAPD returns boxing championship belts stolen in burglary
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Detectives recovered two championship boxing belts that were stolen from the Mission Hills home of former female boxing champion Jennifer “The Razor” Barber, police said Monday.
Barber won the International Female Boxers Assn. super featherweight title in 2010 after beating a South Korean opponent in Seoul. She is now retired
The belts were allegedly stolen by Jose Pedraza, 20, a convicted burglar who was in the process of being deported to Mexico when detectives tracked him down, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.
Detectives linked the March 2012 crime to Pedraza from fingerprints allegedly found on a mirror in Barber’s home, the LAPD said.
“When the print report came in, we had to act fast,” Det. William Cooper said in a statement. He said Pedraza was about to be deported because an immigration hold had been placed on him after he had finished a sentence in County Jail for two previous burglaries.
“Unlike the other burglaries, Pedraza was not copping out to this one, and it seemed like he was in a hurry to get out of the country, like he was trying to avoid something,” according to Cooper, who is investigating the case.
Police said the belts were allegedly found at the bottom of a clothes hamper in Pedraza’s home. Barber reported that she her husband’s wedding rings were also stolen. They have not been found, the LAPD said.
The championship belts were returned to a happy Barber, police said.
“The smile on Jennifer’s face says it all,” Cooper said. “We were glad we were able to get her back her belts.”
Anyone with information is asked to call Cooper at (818) 838-9866. Anonymous tips can be left at (800) 222-8477.
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