4 Teens Arrested In SoCal Cell Phone Store Robbery Spree, Fifth Remains At Large
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Four teens have been arrested on suspicion of a string of robberies at cell phone stores in Los Angeles, Orange and San Bernardino counties, but police say a fifth suspect remains at large.
LAPD investigators arrested the four in connection with a series of robberies between Aug. 1 and Dec. 23, 2019. In each robbery, the suspects would walk in between 2 and 7 p.m., cut or pull security cables from the electronic devices and take them from display tables.
Each time, the suspects ran out with multiple phones. Police say the crew is responsible for thousands of dollars in property loss.
Several of the robberies happened in Los Angeles:
• Sept. 7, around 3 p.m., 600 block of Western Avenue
• Sept. 25, around 5 p.m., 8200 block of Van Nuys Boulevard
• Dec. 14, around 7 p.m., 2700 block of E. 1st Street
• Dec. 18, around 1:45 p.m., 3000 N. San Fernando Road
• Dec. 21, around 4 p.m., 4400 block of Van Nuys Boulevard
• Dec. 23, around 5:30 p.m., 8000 block of Webb Avenue
But as the investigation progressed, deputies discovered the crew had also been robbing and burglarizing cell phone stores in Orange and San Bernardino counties.
Damon Levi Williams, 19, was arrested last Tuesday and is being held without bail. Three more juveniles between the ages of 14 and 17 were also arrested, but their names were withheld because they are underage.
A fifth suspect remains at large. In the released video, he wears a red hooded sweatshirt and is also believed to be underage.
Anyone with information about the suspect or any of the robberies can contact LAPD detectives Matthew Gares or James Verner at (213) 486-6940.