TOPANGA CANYON—The Los Angeles Police Department West Valley and Topanga Divisions Robbery detectives are seeking the public’s assistance with any information that would lead to the arrest of the suspects who committed two armed robberies in the San Fernando Valley Area.
According to the LAPD Blog, the first robbery occurred on April 11 at around 9:00 p.m., where two suspects, one armed with a handgun entered an electronics store on the 20000 block of Sherman Way, ordering employees to a back room to open the safe and took more than $30,000 in cell phones. Suspect #1 informed employees that the gun he had was real, while Suspect #2 removed all the cell phones and both suspects fled the store. No video footage was captured of the suspects and authorities are not sure if the suspects fled on foot or in a vehicle.
The second robbery occurred on April 24, at around 9:15 a.m., where the same suspects entered another electronics store on the 17000 block of Vanowen Street. The first suspect again had a firearm. Suspect #1 forced an employee to the rear room of the store and informed her to open the safe. Suspect #2 took approximately $42,000 in cell phones. Both suspects then quickly fled the store. During this robbery, both suspects were captured on video surveillance at the store and numerous witnesses were able to provide authorities with specific descriptions of each suspect and their vehicle.
Detectives believed both incidents were related and showed video footage of the April 24 robbery, to employees at the cell phone store that was robbed on April 11. Employees identified both suspects who had robbed the store from the video footage.
Suspect #1 is described as a Hispanic male, between the ages of 25 and 30, standing between 6 feet and 6 feet 3 inches tall. He weighs between 200 and 220 pounds and was wearing a black suit and black Aviator sunglasses. He was carrying a handgun and is believed to be the lead suspect, and did most of the talking. Authorities are reminding the public that the suspect should be considered armed and dangerous.
Suspect #2 is described as a Hispanic male, between the ages of 25 and 30, standing between 5 feet 11 inches to 6 feet tall. He weights between 220 and 230 pounds and was wearing a long sleeve gray sweater, brown plaid shorts and a black backpack. He was believed to have visited the stores a few days before both robberies took place, browsing the stores for merchandise.
The vehicle that the suspects’ are believed to have fled in is a 1999 to 2000, green Honda or Nissan with slight traffic accident damage to the left front bumper. A surveillance camera from a local business captured the suspects’ images during the robbery on Vanowen Street.
Anyone with information regarding this crime is urged to contact West Valley Division Robbery Detective Angeles at (818) 374-7746 or Topanga Division Robbery Detective Ruiz at (818) 756-2523. During non-business hours or on weekends, calls should be directed to 1-877-LAPD-24-7. Anyone wishing to remain anonymous should call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (800-222-8477). Tipsters may also contact Crime Stoppers by texting to phone number 274637 (C-R-I-M-E-S on most keypads) with a cell phone. All text messages should begin with the letters “LAPD.” Tipsters may also go to LAPDOnline.org, click on “web tips” and follow the prompts.
