3 Men Held in Hotel Robberies in 9 Counties

Three men were arrested Wednesday on suspicion of robbing 41 midsized hotels from Fresno to San Diego counties, authorities said.

Police and sheriff’s deputies in Norwalk arrested David Martinez, 21, Mickey McMahan, 28, and Marques Taylor, 22, all of Norwalk. The arrests came a day after authorities held a news conference in Anaheim, where the alleged spree began, requesting the public’s help in finding suspects.

“We’re not discounting the fact that there may be more suspects,” said Anaheim Police Sgt. Rick Martinez.

Hotels in 30 cities have been robbed since March 14, including 16 in 11 Orange County cities. The most recent robbery occurred in Anaheim on Sept. 21, Martinez said.

On June 21 at the Courtyard by Marriott in Buena Park, a man with a sparse mustache and razor rash wearing a Dodgers baseball cap got away with $350 after forcing the clerk to lock himself in a back office, said Buena Park Police Sgt. Gary Worrall.

One man seemed to play a lead role in the robberies, while another sometimes acted as a lookout, authorities said. Although it is not clear what the third man’s role was, he may have helped in planning the robberies, driving the getaway vehicles and disposing of evidence, said Capt. Stephen Johnson of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

“We can’t say for certain the role of all three until we compare all the evidence in all the jurisdictions,” he said. “Some of the roles could have changed during the commission of these crimes.”

The arrests came the day after Anaheim police released video surveillance tapes depicting two men believed to be involved in the robberies and announced a $20,000 reward for information leading to their arrests and convictions. The sheriff’s departments of Los Angeles and Orange counties then received two tips leading to the recovery of evidence that resulted in Wednesday’s arrests, authorities said.

The men are being held at a Los Angeles County jail.

Bail was set at $100,000 for Martinez and Taylor, and $182,270 for McMahan because of outstanding warrants for an unrelated vehicle code violation and narcotics possession, Johnson said.

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Southland heists

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Police arrested three men Wednesday on suspicion of committing 41 hotel robberies in the state from March 14 to Sept. 21. Shown are the number of robberies by county and city affected:

Hotel robberies, by county

Fresno Co., Selma: 1

Kern Co., Bakersfield: 2

Santa Barbara Co., Carpinteria: 1

Ventura Co., Camarillo, Newbury Park, Oxnard: 3

Los Angeles Co., Arcadia, Diamond Bar, El Monte, La Mirada, Long Beach, Rosemead, Rowland Heights, Santa Clarita, Stevenson Ranch: 12

Orange Co., Anaheim, Buena Park, Costa Mesa, Cypress, Irvine, Laguna Hills, La Palma, Mission Viejo, Orange, Placentia, San Clemente: 16

Riverside Co., Corona, Palm Desert: 3

San Bernardino Co., Ontario: 1

San Diego Co., San Diego: 2

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Source: Anaheim Police Department