City employee interrupts burglary in Irvine; 3 arrested

Irvine police said they arrested two men and a woman after a city employee scared them off in the middle of a burglary Thursday.

According to authorities, a code enforcement officer was driving a marked city vehicle near Lorraine Way and Irvine Center Drive at 9:15 a.m. when she saw three people trying to load a safe into the front seat of a car.

“Upon seeing the city vehicle, the suspects quickly got into [their] vehicle and fled the scene, leaving the large safe on the parkway in front of the home,” police said in a news release.

The code enforcement officer relayed a description of the people and their car to police, who pulled them over about two miles away on West Yale Loop, the release said.

Police said the car contained burglary tools, gloves and items stolen from the home that the three had just left. Authorities believe the suspects pried open a window and ransacked the home.

Authorities identified the suspects as Derron Anthony Jefferson, 26, Quincy Carnell Keaton, 25, and Shatavia Sharon Phillips, 18. Police did not provide their cities of residence.

Jefferson and Keaton are on parole for burglary convictions, authorities said.

Police are asking that anyone with information about the case call Det. Ramon Lerma at (949) 724-7233.

— Jeremiah Dobruck

Twitter: @jeremiahdobruck