Police accuse two youths in string of armed robberies in the Los Angeles area
Los Angeles police have tied two youths accused of robbing a convenience store in South Los Angeles to a string of robberies throughout Los Angeles County.
On Saturday the LAPD received a call of an armed robbery in progress at a convenience store near the 3200 block of South Central Avenue. When officers arrived on scene, a witness pointed them to the suspects’ vehicle fleeing the store.
Officers tried in vain to stop the vehicle, then pursued it, according to a police report. During the pursuit, police allege, one of the occupants tossed a firearm out of the car, and it was recovered by officers.
When the pursuit ended, police detained both occupants of the vehicle: Los Angeles resident Nathen Sanchez, 18, and a 12-year-old girl, whose name was not released.
Police say they recovered a large but undisclosed amount of currency from the vehicle, which had been reported stolen earlier that day in an armed carjacking in Hollenbeck.
The pair are also believed to be involved in additional armed robberies in South Gate and Azusa and additional crimes in the Los Angeles area, police say. No details were provided about those incidents or what led police to believe the two youths were involved in them.
Sanchez was arrested for robbery, with bail set at $175,000. No information was released about the disposition of the 12-year-old girl.
A Chilean burglary crew was apprehended in Pacific Palisades, police say. The three men and one teen came to the U.S. on tourist visas, according to authorities.
Detectives in the LAPD’s Newton Division are searching for any additional victims in the L.A. County area. Anyone with information about additional crimes is urged to contact Newton robbery detectives at (323) 318-3559 during business hours, or (877) 527-3247 during non-business hours or on weekends.
Anyone wishing to remain anonymous can call Los Angeles Regional Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-8477 or go to www.lacrimestoppers.org. Tipsters may also download the P-3 Tips” mobile application and select Los Angeles Regional Crime Stoppers as their local program.
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