2nd suspect in 2022 robbery, murder of armored car guard in San Leandro arrested
A man suspected of being the driver during a robbery and murder of an armored car security guard in San Leandro nearly two years ago has been arrested, police said Tuesday.
On Sept. 7, 2022, the GardaWorld security guard was leaving the Kaiser Permanente San Leandro Medical Center at about 11:42 a.m., carrying a bag with an undisclosed amount of cash, when he was shot in the back of the head, according to police.
The suspect grabbed the bag and fled in a waiting getaway car, police said, and the hospital was placed on lockdown immediately after the shooting. The guard, 60-year-old John Mendez who had been with the company nearly 40 years, succumbed to his injuries a day later.
The suspect in the shooting, 28-year-old Akbar Bey of Oakland, was arrested in October 2022, but the suspected driver of the getaway car-- Artemio Torres, 28-- was believed to have fled the state.
On Memorial Day, an officer with the California Highway Patrol Ventura office made a traffic stop on a vehicle in the city of Oxnard. The driver, later identified as Torres, allegedly gave the CHP officer false information about his identity.
Further investigation by the officer uncovered an outstanding arrest warrant for Torres and he was taken into custody. On Monday, Torres was extradited from Southern California to Alameda County, where he is facing felony robbery charges, San Leandro Police said.
There are no other outstanding suspects in this case.