It was a tense night inside the iconic rounded, shiny towers of Downtown's Bonaventure Hotel last night, as a man claiming to be armed barricaded himself inside a room and held Los Angeles Police Department officers in a standoff for 8 hours, according to LA Now. The suspect had been told he had to leave the hotel by security when staff discovered his credit card was not valid, notes KTLA. more ›

There are at least 283 reported cases of credit and debit card fraud, all originating from a now-closed EVG gas station in Sierra Madre, says Arcadia Patch. Most claims come from patrons of the station, are Sierra Madre residents, and involve a single fraudulent charge of less than $200. The investigation is ongoing, and the Sierra Madre Police urge locals to check their bank statements for fraudulent charges and to file a report. more ›

Little plastic cards in your wallet actually don't mean you can buy stuff and never pay for it, especially if it's your employer who gave you the card in the first place. It seems several Los Angeles County workers, however, took taxpayers for a ride by purchasing all sorts of goods for personal use with county-issued credit cards, according to the LA Times. more ›

Los Angeles has thousands of broken meters, frustrating confused drivers and concerned city budget officials. “Instead of carrying a bagful of quarters to feed the meter, drivers will now be able to pay quickly and conveniently with a credit card," explained Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa this morning as he unveiled "coin and card" parking meters in Los Feliz, where 200 meters were installed. more ›

Should this be one of those "that's so L.A." moments or a "why wasn't this done years ago" moments? For those of you who always carry plastic and never cash, this should be convenient, at least when you visit Nancy Silverton, Mario Batalli & Joe Bastlanich's Osteria and Pizzeria Mozza restaurants. more ›

It's hard to juggle being a beauty queen and a wife and mom...but even harder if you add a whole other identity to the mix. Manhattan Beach's Susan Shaw was once Miss Hawaii International, and had a husband and children in Oahu who didn't know she also had a life here in SoCal. Shaw was arrested in Honolulu last month, after detectives here found her rented home full of "hundreds of stolen credit cards," along with "Social Security numbers, addresses and birthdays of victims and potential victim," according to abc7. more ›