Investigators unravel mystery of ex-con found with weapons, counterfeit money in LA penthouse

Ex-con causes alarm with weapon-filled apartment

LOS ANGELES — Authorities investigating a call about a gas odor at a luxury apartment in Los Angeles got more than they bargained for.

They found a cache of loaded weapons, a mosaic depicting the CIA seal and equipment for counterfeiting money. High-powered binoculars were trained on the U.S. Federal Reserve building next door.

What followed was a six-week hunt for a suspect who had slipped out of the fire escape moments earlier and whose evasiveness drew comparisons to fictional agent Jason Bourne.

Police would eventually find their man, Brian Alexik, hiding out in his girlfriend’s apartment less than a mile from where he fled. But three weeks on, detectives are still trying to figure out just who he is, what plot they may have thwarted and whether he was a lone wolf or part of a larger group.