2 men arrested for vandalizing abandoned luxury apartments in Downtown Los Angeles

Police announced the arrest of two people who allegedly vandalized the unfinished Oceanwide Plaza in downtown Los Angeles Thursday.

At least 27 floors of the deserted three-building project were covered with various multi-color tags.  In a tweet sent on Jan.31, the Los Angeles Police Department stated it has teamed up with the district representatives to develop a plan to secure the property. 

A day later, officers responded to the abandoned project after hearing about more vandals tagging the 30th floor of one of the towers. When they arrived, on-site security told the police that the suspects were driving away from the building.

Authorities tracked down the suspects and tried to pull them over but the driver refused to stop. The officer briefly lost the suspect and eventually found the car again and conducted another traffic stop. 

They only cited the driver for failure to yield and let the passenger go. 

The graffiti started popping up at the abandoned towers this week. Officers said they made arrests earlier this week on Jan. 30 and announced the citations on Feb. 1. 

Victor Daniel Ramirez, 35, and Roberto Perez, 25, were cited for trespassing and released from custody. 

Construction on the $1 billion Oceanwide Plaza started in 2015 and promised to change Downtown Los Angeles from "an in-and-out destination to a place to dwell," according to the architecture firm CallisonRTKL's website. 

The mega-project boasted twin 40-story buildings that would house 340 luxury condominiums and include private screening rooms, a dog washing facility and many other amenities on the property. The highlight of the project was the 49-story high-rise that would house 164 more condos in addition to a Park Hyatt hotel, restaurants, a rooftop pool, and other event spaces.

Work on the trio of towers stalled in 2019 after the developer reportedly faced financial troubles.