A third person has been arrested in connection with a robbery at a Simi Valley jewelry store, police said Wednesday.
The suspect, Eric Russell, 24, of Los Angeles, was arrested Tuesday after an undercover officer monitoring a residential area near the crime scene noticed a suspicious vehicle, police said.
Two other suspects, Lineric Naborne, 18, and Melvin Norris, 26, both of Los Angeles, were arrested on Talbert Avenue earlier in the day after an extensive search by Simi Valley and Los Angeles police and the Ventura County Sheriff's Office.
Police said the three men walked into the store in the 1900 block of Sequoia Avenue about 10:40 a.m. Tuesday. One of them had a can of pepper spray, which he used when the store owner refused to comply, police said.
The owner reached for a concealed handgun, but the suspects assaulted him and wrestled the gun away, police said. They smashed the display case, took several pieces of jewelry and fled, police said.
The owner suffered facial cuts and a possible broken nose, police said.
The gun and jewelry were not located, police said.
This offense may be punishable by 2 to 9 years in prison. Armed robbery is a more serious version of this crime, committed when a person commits robbery while armed with a deadly weapon. Under California's 10-20-life law, a defendant may face an additional 10 years in prison for displaying a gun, 20 years for firing a fun and 25 years to life for causing serious injury to another person with a gun.
Contact Ventura County Criminal Defense Attorney
Robert Helfend if you have been charged with
robbery.