Whittier man accuses 2 house cleaners of stealing wallet, shoots at them, police say

A man accused two cleaning women of stealing his wallet, shot at them, barricaded himself in his Whittier home then surrendered to police on Tuesday, Feb. 23, authorities said.

The women got away from the man and weren’t wounded, Whittier Lt. Dominic Iraldo said.

They were cleaning the two-story back house, on the 7900 block of Painter Avenue, when the man accused them of taking his wallet, Iraldo said. The women denied doing so.

During the dispute that occurred after 9 a.m., Iraldo said the man took out a handgun and allegedly threatened to shoot the women if they didn’t produce the wallet.

The suspect fired once, hitting a kitchen cabinet, Iraldo said.

“They (the women) became extremely distraught,” the lieutenant said, adding the suspect wouldn’t allow them to leave.

They suggested maybe his wallet was in his car, parked out front. The suspect demanded the women accompany him, Iraldo said, and they were able to run away before getting someone to call police

Officers surrounded the area, evacuated the front house and used a public-address system in an armored rescue vehicle.

The standoff lasted 20 minutes, with police arresting Alex Michael, 41, on suspicion of attempted murder, false imprisonment and for being a felon in possession of a weapon, authorities said.