Police Dog Sniffs Out Man Suspected in Market Robbery

A 32-year-old Lancaster man who allegedly robbed a supermarket was arrested Friday after a Sheriff’s Department dog found him hiding in brush, according to authorities.

Genaro Duran was booked on suspicion of grand theft at the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s Santa Clarita Station, said Sgt. Richard Larue.

The incident began at about 1:30 p.m. A deputy patrolling the parking lot at a Vons supermarket in the 16500 block of Soledad Canyon Road was flagged down by a bystander who pointed out a 1982 Toyota and said the driver had just robbed the Hughes supermarket at Soledad Canyon and Whites Canyon roads, authorities said.

The deputy followed the Toyota until the driver halted and ran off, Larue said. Sheriff’s deputies established a containment zone around the wash behind a restaurant at Sand Canyon Road and De Lone Street.

While some deputies were looking for the suspect, others determined that the Hughes market indeed had been robbed and the Toyota--which was reported stolen--was full of stolen property, Larue said.

Deputies brought in a dog who found Duran hiding in the brush, authorities said. He was taken to Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital to be treated for minor injuries before he was booked.