Sierra Madre : Shoplifting Suspect Nabbed

A man reported as kidnaped from his pickup truck at a local intersection was a shoplifting suspect who was grabbed by Pasadena store detectives after a chase into Sierra Madre, police said.

Five eyewitnesses reported to police Aug. 31 that they saw two men abduct the man at Michillinda Avenue and Sierra Madre Boulevard.

Sierra Madre Police Detective John Cordeschi said that the two men were store detectives from the nearby Pasadena Sears on Foothill Boulevard and that the man they grabbed had allegedly taken merchandise from the store without paying.

He said Sears store detectives had chased the man into the store’s parking lot, where he tried to run them down. They pursued the man into Sierra Madre in one of their own cars, apprehended him and handed him over to Pasadena police.

Pasadena police said the alleged shoplifter, Victor Martinez, 25, of Pasadena, was arrested on suspicion of strong-arm robbery and assault with a deadly weapon.

Cordeschi said he discovered that the “kidnapers’ ” car belonged to a Sears detective after checking the license plate number provided by witnesses.