OC Filipino Restaurant Survives Hate-Fueled Vandalism, Finds Support

LAKE FOREST, CA — A Lake Forest Filipino restaurant plagued by vandalism is finally free from worry after an Orange County Sheriff's Deputy arrested the prime suspect last week.

Owner Pamela Perez and her family have swept up broken glass, discarded unusable items, and boarded up the restaurant's windows six times in under a year. The restaurant has been left in darkness, Perez opting to leave up the plywood in place of welcoming windows, lest they be broken again.

Thanks to Lake Forest Deputy Tyler Carrillo, who was on patrol in that same shopping center, a suspect matching the description of the vandal was finally found this month.

Larry John Abraham, Jr., a 28-year-old Lake Forest resident, was arrested and convicted of six counts of felony vandalism with hate crime enhancements, according to the sheriff's department. He will spend one year in jail, with formal probation afterward until 2026. Abraham also has outstanding warrants in another county and will be transferred to answer those at the end of his time spent in OC jail.

For over a decade, Pamela Perez has cared for Lake Forest residents by providing family recipes, desserts, and delicacies to fans across South Orange County. She grew from a food court space at the Laguna Hills Mall to the Lake Forest restaurant, serving authentic cuisine alongside Asian specialty groceries.

"Many loyal customers say that we are more than just a restaurant and store," the restaurant owner says. "Pinoy Pam's is a slice of home that brings back memories of happiness." She served the community for over a decade, fulfilling a lifelong dream of sharing her culture with her community.

Then, a nightmare began with a hail of broken windows.

When a vandal started shattering her window in 2023, she was determined to keep things running, according to the sheriff's department. After the sixth such incident, they opted to leave the plywood boards up instead. On her website, she shared a quote from Ben Stein: "Faith is not believing that God can. t is knowing that He will." Even amid the struggle of dealing with vandals, the restaurant owner persevered.

"I've always wondered why the place was boarded up," one Facebook commenter said. I was relieved to know they are still in business."

"These incidents caused thousands of dollars in damages and left the owners fearful of replacing their windows, only to have them broken again," Orange County Sheriff's Department information officer Jamie Blashaw said.

Residents and supporters are now adding a stop at Pinoy Pam's Best to their outings in Lake Forest for sweet and savory Filipino flavors. You can find the restaurant and store at 23635 El Toro Road in Lake Forest.

This is not the first time a business in Lake Forest has suffered at the hands of hate-fueled vandals.

In 2020, Foothill Ranch's Urban Grill and Wine Bar was vandalized on Thanksgiving night, with a barrage of hateful words spraypainted in red across their front windows, the doors cemented shut.

The vandals tagged a front window with red spray paint, scrawling a message dripping with hate aimed at a longtime staff member, Kimberly Smith. To add insult to injury, the vandals used cement compound to seal the keyed front doors shut.

After customers and friends arrived to help remove the graffiti, Smith told Patch: "Forgiveness isn't approving of what happened. It's choosing to rise above it."

That same attitude has seen Pinoy Pam's Best thrive even amid chaos while waiting for their vandal to be found and prosecuted.

"Pinoy Pam's is the best and very friendly," Another Facebook commenter wrote. "Thank you, OCSD—LakeForest. There's no place in our community for these stupid acts of violence."

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