The home invasion of billionaire Ernest Rady last Tuesday, Feb. 6, left many La Jolla residents ” especially those who live closest to the Radys’ Prestwick Drive home ” concerned for their safety, police said.
Law enforcement is working to locate the suspect, described as a 5-foot, 8-inch Middle Eastern or Hispanic male with a medium to muscular build and weighing about 165 pounds, with shiny black hair. He was unshaven and may have been wearing a wig.
But the incident, which involved the suspect posing as a delivery person and barging into the family’s home with a stun gun and handgun, is not a usual occurrence in La Jolla or throughout the city, according to Capt. Mary Cornicelli of the San Diego Police Department’s robbery division.
“It’s very unusual “” very rare,” Cornicelli said by phone almost one week after the invasion.
She cited a recently compiled quarterly report of crime statistics that revealed only about 30 residential robberies citywide during the last three months.
“We have no new information on the suspect,” she said. “We have gotten some tips that have come in that we are investigating but nothing that we are in a position to release.”
What made the Rady break-in even more unusual was the amount of time the suspect stayed inside the home.
After binding Evelyn Rady and the maid with duct tape, and later doing the same to Ernest Rady when he returned home from work, the suspect continued to ransack the home for more than five hours, Cornicelli said.
The man, who was also wearing stud earrings, a black blazer, tan pants and black soft-sole lace-up shoes, left the home at around 9:45 p.m. with just under $1,000 in cash.
While police are still conducting an inventory, the family has reported that nothing else in the home is missing, according to the police captain.
The Radys called police after the man left. Ernest Rady was taken to the hospital to be treated for non-life-threatening injuries that occurred when the suspect used a stun gun on him, police said. His wife and the maid were unharmed.
Police cannot confirm a report by an officer who initially responded to the scene that claimed the suspect, after placing the Radys in an upstairs bedroom, had lain on a bed with the victims in between searching for an unknown item in the home, according to Cornicelli.
The victims also reported the suspect was talking on a hands-free cellular phone device, possibly a Bluetooth, and appeared to be communicating with several other people during the time he was inside the home.
The only suspect known to be in the house was the one victims described to police, Cornicelli said.
Ernest Rady, a well-known philanthropist in San Diego, donated $30 million in 2003 to University of California, San Diego’s school of management and $60 million in 2006 to the Children’s Hospital and health center, which is named in his family’s honor.
The San Diego Police Department, joined by Mayor Jerry Sanders and City Council President/District 1 Councilman Scott Peters, will address residents’ safety concerns during a forum scheduled for 6:30 p.m. today, Feb. 15, at the La Jolla Recreation Center, 615 Prospect Street.
Since the invasion, police have been encouraging residents to practice good safety measures when in their homes, Cornicelli said.
“If you can afford some type of security system, you should get one ” for example, bright security lights are a major deterrent,” she said. “Get to know your neighbors and the type of vehicles they drive, and if somebody comes to your door and you don’t recognize them and are not expecting a delivery, then don’t answer the door. These are just basic safety tips.”
The police captain said she also agreed with a quote by one security expert in a recent article concerning the Rady incident saying that children are told not to talk to strangers and the same standards should apply to adults.
“One thing that really rang true was that he was saying people are very comfortable in their own homes and are more apt to turn on their security systems when they aren’t home to protect their material things instead of their own safety,” Cornicelli said. “That is very interesting to me and I think that people have to be more cognizant of these things.”
To report any information concerning the Rady case, contact Crimestoppers, (888) 580-TIPS.