2 Arrested in Series of Robberies, Assaults

Police arrested two purported gang members in connection with a trio of robberies and assaults that occurred in a parking lot early Tuesday.

Thousand Oaks resident Arturo Sanchez, 20, and a 17-year-old boy from Oxnard are thought to be among six gang members who assaulted three people, two of whom were treated at Los Robles Regional Medical Center and later released.

Authorities did not disclose the names of the victims.

The two suspects, whom police arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon and robbery, remain in custody.

Police said the robbery and assaults took place between 3 and 3:30 a.m. in a parking lot next to an apartment complex in the 800 block of Warwick Avenue.

The three victims were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time, said Sheriff’s Senior Deputy Harold Hanley.

“Each of the victims were going out to their car when asked for money,” he said. “Whether they had it or not, [they] were subsequently beaten with hands and rocks.”

The victims were robbed of an undetermined amount of money and personal property.

Hanley said authorities are not classifying this as a crime spree; the gang members were simply loitering at the parking lot.