San Mateo Retail Theft Bust Nets 4 Suspects Including 12-Year-Old Girl, Drugs And Firearm
SAN MATEO (CBS SF) -- Police in San Mateo on Tuesday announced a weekend bust that ended with the arrest of four people -- including a 12-year-old San Francisco girl -- following a retail theft, according to authorities.
Early last Saturday evening at around 4:45 p.m., San Mateo police officers arrested the suspects after an employee flagged down a patrol vehicle in the parking lot during a theft in progress at a Ross Department Store on the 600 block of Concar Drive.
The employee told officers a group of four suspects actively stealing from the store. Additional officers arrived and helped saturate the area, quickly detaining all four suspects as they approached their getaway vehicle.
Police were able to confirm a theft occurred by reviewing security footage.
A search of the suspects and vehicle revealed a loaded so-called "ghost gun" that had its serial number removed, suspected fentanyl, narcotics paraphernalia, other drugs, burglary tools and stolen merchandise.
Police also determined the suspect vehicle was connected to numerous retail thefts in the Bay Area. Those law enforcement agencies have been notified and the investigations are ongoing.
The adult suspects, who all had extensive criminal histories, were identified as 31-year-old Hayward resident Christopher Marc Wise, 24-year-old San Francisco resident Jeremiah Witherspoon and 27-year-old San Francisco resident Dontrice Ahjanae Thompson.
The 12-year-old girl taken into custody is a San Francisco resident and a
a ward of the court for juvenile human trafficking.
Wise was booked at San Mateo County Jail and charged for being a felon in possession of a firearm, possession of narcotic controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. Witherspoon and Thompson were cited and released in compliance with current COVID-19 jail protocols.
The 12-year-old girl was delivered to San Francisco County Child Protective Services.
