MISSION VIEJO, LAKE FOREST : 3 Robberies, Attempt Being Investigated

Sheriff’s deputies are investigating three robberies--one at a bank and two at service stations--that have occurred since Friday in Mission Viejo and Lake Forest. There was also an attempted robbery.

Sheriff’s Lt. Dick Olson said it’s too early to tell if the crimes are connected.

The most recent robbery was just after midnight Sunday at Bob’s Mobil Station on La Paz Road in Mission Viejo. A robber wearing a purple ski mask walked up to a clerk, said he had a gun and demanded money, according to the Sheriff’s Department.

The robber fled after being given an undetermined amount of cash.

The Texaco Gas Station at Marguerite and Avery parkways in Mission Viejo was robbed Friday afternoon; the crime ended in an arrest.

Sheriff’s authorities said two men grabbed a bag filled with an undisclosed amount of cash from a manager, then drove off in a 1989 Nissan. Witnesses reported the vehicle’s license number and, a short time later, a sheriff’s deputy spotted a vehicle at the Mission Viejo Mall with that license plate.

The deputy stopped the vehicle and arrested 19-year-old Laronzo Kenyatta Brooks of Mission Viejo, on suspicion of robbery. The second suspect is being sought.

There was also a bank robbery and an attempted robbery at a liquor store on Friday in Lake Forest.

A robber wearing a baseball cap and jacket walked into Wells Fargo Bank on Rockfield Boulevard in Lake Forest about 3:30 p.m. and demanded money from a teller. He fled with an undisclosed amount of cash.

In the attempted robbery, a man went into the Rockfield Liquor store on Rockfield Boulevard at about 8:15 a.m. and, while acting as if he were armed, demanded money from a clerk. He fled empty-handed when a customer walked in the door, according to the Sheriff’s Department.

The suspect drove off in an old brown El Camino or Ranchero with damage to the left side.