Man Arrested In String Of Orange County Fast Food, Convenience Store Robberies
IRVINE (CBSLA) — Police have arrested a man they believe committed a string of armed robberies throughout Orange County.
Emanuel Demar Banks, 38, of Los Angeles, is being held without bail and is scheduled to make his first court appearance Wednesday.
Banks was taken into custody Tuesday morning outside a Gardena hotel where he had been staying. Police recovered evidence from his hotel room linking him to the Orange County robberies between Saturday and Monday, Irvine police spokeswoman Kim Mohr said.
Huntington Beach police say the man who robbed a Carl's Jr. matched descriptions given in robberies in Costa Mesa, Tustin and Irvine that all happened within about three hours.
After Banks was taken into custody, investigators said he was also implicated in three more heists -- a 7-Eleven in Garden Grove at about 4:45 a.m. Saturday and a Chevron station in Santa Ana about an hour later; and a Shell gas station in Westminster at about 1:30 p.m. Monday.
Each robbery unfolded in similar fashion – the suspect would pose as a customer with cash in hand, either ordering food or looking to purchase an item. As soon as the register opens, he pulls out a handgun and gets away with the cash, police said.