Glendale : Not Guilty Plea in Theft Case

Two men charged with burglarizing a Glendale liquor store and taking $370 in cash and goods last week have pleaded not guilty, officials said.

Trennis Lee Cheese, 29, of Walnut and Darryl Bernard Jackson, 29, of Los Angeles face one count each of felony burglary, Deputy Dist. Atty. Lawrence McGrail said.

Both men are accused of forcing open the front door of Canada Liquors, 2523 Canada Blvd., at 2:59 a.m. Thursday. Police said a rock was used to smash the glass door.

Officials said the suspects took cash, liquor, cigarettes and matches. A witness later told officers that he saw two men leaving the store in a white vehicle with a missing left front fender.

While on patrol, Officer Russell Hancock heard about the burglary and decided to stake out the westbound Ventura Freeway on-ramp at Pacific Avenue.

Within minutes, police said, he spotted the vehicle and followed it. Hancock eventually forced the car, a 1991 Hyundai Excel, to pull over on the Golden State Freeway, north of Los Feliz Boulevard, police said.

Cheese and Jackson were taken into custody and the stolen goods were recovered, police said.

A preliminary hearing has been scheduled for May 3.