Countywide : Friend Unwittingly Leads Police to Pair

A woman unwittingly assisted police in the arrest of two of her friends who robbed a Santa Paula store and crashed their car while attempting a getaway, authorities said Thursday.

The two men, who stole two 12-packs of beer from the Sunset Produce Market on North Oak Street, collided with a light pole at the corner of Olive Street and Harvard Boulevard a short distance away while trying to flee, police said. They abandoned their car and later called the woman to come and pick them up, police said.

Unable to find the men and unaware that they were sought by police, the friend flagged down an officer at 12:35 a.m. to ask for help in locating them, Cmdr. Mark Hanson said.

After police realized that the description of the two men matched that of the suspects, they followed the woman as she drove around town, authorities said.

An officer spotted two people getting into the car, Hanson said.

Authorities arrested the men at 1:15 a.m. after the car was pulled over on the Santa Paula Freeway headed toward Fillmore.

The suspects, William Lopez, 41, and Benjamin Romero, 21, were being held Thursday at Ventura County Jail on suspicion of robbery, with bail set at $20,000 each.

The woman, whose name was not released, was not cited, police said.

During the robbery, which happened at 8:20 p.m. Wednesday, the two men brought beer to the store counter, where they threatened the clerk with a pipe and demanded money, policesaid.

When the clerk refused, the men knocked him to the floor, Hanson said. The clerk grabbed a kitchen knife from under the counter and fended off the robbers, Hanson said.

Police found one 12-pack of beer in the car, Hanson said.