“People being in that building is extremely dangerous,” Bass told NBC 4 LA. “I guarantee you tragedy will take place there if that place is not boarded up quickly,”

The towers are being monitored 24 hours a day by police patrols, after it emerged that 30 floors of the towers had been covered in graffiti, with some 18 people being arrested there since Feb. 1.

The towers began construction in 2015, but by 2018 money had ran out and building work stopped in 2019 after the developer went out of business, NBC 4 LA reported.

“We do think that unfortunately it has become an iconic location to draw and for nefarious acts,” Moore said, referring to the graffiti. He added that some of those arrested were from out of town.

Moore said the owner of the tower had gone bankrupt but that efforts were underway to recoup the costs of the extra policing.

Next week, the LA City Council will consider a motion to spend $3 million on installing a new fence, clearing debris and possibly hiring private security guards to alleviate the pressure on the police force.

Councilman Kevin De León, who represents the area and tabled the motion, told NBC 4 LA he had attempted to contact the China-based developer through phone, email and social media but had not managed to make contact.