Pizza delivery driver robbed in LCF by 2 suspects he feared had a weapon
Crescenta Valley Sheriff’s Station deputies are searching for two suspects after a pizza delivery man claimed he was robbed Friday night by two men on foot, whom he believed may have been armed, after he made a delivery in La Cañada.
Watch Commander Lt. Rob Hahnlein said the call came in at around 9:40 p.m. The victim said he’d been delivering food to a home on the 1100 block of Descanso Drive and was walking back to his car when he was approached by two men he described as Latinos and wearing dark hooded sweatshirts.
The driver attempted to get inside his vehicle but was pulled out by the two men, according to a sheriff’s incident report. At least one of the suspects made a gesture toward the pizza delivery man that made the victim believe he was in possession of some kind of a weapon, Hahnlein said in an interview Saturday.
“So far, we have it was a simulated one, like putting a hand in a pocket,” the watch commander said. “He thought they had a gun.”
After the robbery, the victim returned to his restaurant (the name of the business was redacted from the official report) and called authorities. During a search for the suspects, deputies saw a possible witness sitting in a vehicle of a driveway at the home where the incident had occurred, the report stated.
When approached, the man exited the vehicle and ran into the garage of the home, closing the door as deputies approached. Air support was requested to clear the surrounding area and conduct a call out to people inside the residence. At that time the man exited and was detained pending further investigation.
When the victim told deputies he could not confirm the potential witness was a suspect, the man was released, according to the report.
The suspects made off with $300 in currency, as well as the delivery man’s wallet and cellphone. The incident is being investigated as a strong arm robbery, as opposed to an armed robbery, since it was not known if the suspects were in possession of a weapon.
Anyone who may have information is asked to call the Crescenta Valley Sheriff’s Station at (818) 248-3464.
Twitter: @SaraCardine
