LOS ANGELES – A shared question was on the minds of residents Tuesday night near a scenic overlook on Mulholland Drive in the Hollywood Hills.
What’s in the safe? The speculation began when Los Angeles firefighters, in heavy rescue gear, pulled two large safes Tuesday afternoon from the overgrown canyon.
The mysterious discovery was made near the Universal City overlook, which offers sweeping views of the San Fernando Valley to the north.
Instead of expansive views, residents were treated to a more unusual sight at the scene when an approximately 4.5-foot, 600-pound steel safe was pulled out of thick brush.
When fire rescue personnel retrieved that safe, they saw a smaller one not far away.
Both boxes were slowly hauled up the hillside on ropes during a three-hour operation over steep, rugged terrain.
The smaller safe turned out to be empty, but the second one remained locked Tuesday night. The Los Angeles police took the safes.
“It could very well have been stolen,” LAPD Detective Tim Kirkpatrick said. “It’s evidence and we want to follow up on all possible leads,” he said.
Kirkpatrick said the LAPD has a specialized team of professional safecrackers, who could get to work on the big safe Wednesday.