Man Arrested, 2 Sought in O.C. Robbery
A man was arrested Friday on suspicion of robbing a sandwich shop in Costa Mesa, police said, after he and two accomplices fled on foot and ran almost directly into officers setting up a DUI checkpoint.
William Adam Banks, 22, was taken to Costa Mesa Jail and booked on suspicion of robbery, burglary and receiving stolen property. His bail has been set at $100,000.
“The two other guys are still at large,” said Lt. Dale Birney, a spokesman for the Costa Mesa Police Department.
The incident began about 8 p.m., Birney said, when three people walked into a shop in the 1800 block of Newport Boulevard and used a handgun to herd employees and customers into a freezer.
After leaving the shop with an unspecified amount of cash, they were seen about 300 yards away by one of the officers setting up the checkpoint on 17th Street near Newport Boulevard.
Banks was arrested, Birney said, as the other two fled. It was unclear late Friday whether police had recovered the handgun or any of the cash.
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