BREAKING NEWS: Suspects arrested in follow-home robbery series from Hustler and other casinos
The Orange County Sheriff's Department sent this just now:
Follow Home Robbery Arrest
On October 24, 2008 at approximately 3:45 am, a couple from Mission Viejo, was followed home from the Hustler
Casino in Gardena where they had been gambling. As they were approaching their apartment, an African American male and a Hispanic male both in their twenties wearing dark clothing confronted them. The suspects demanded heir money and used physical force to remove both their wallets and purse. The loss was cash, a cell phone, camera and black Coach purse; the suspects left in an unknown vehicle. Orange County Sheriff's Department Investigators
went to the Hustler Casino and reviewed the surveillance tape and observed a suspect vehicle following the victims as they left the parking lot. There were no other suspect leads.
Hustler Casino Security informed Investigators that they had several follow home robberies in the past month and provided the Orange County Sheriff's Department with the agencies' names and report numbers. Investigators contacted each agency and obtained copies of their reports in attempt to establish a pattern. Investigators then met
with the Department of Justice (DOJ) Bureau of Gambling control and gathered additional information and
surveillance photos regarding these incidences.
The previous follow-home robberies are as follows:
• September 15, 2008 at 10:55 pm in Torrance.
• October 10, 2008 at 4:00 am in Redondo Beach.
• October 18, 2008 at 4:00 am in Los Angeles.
• November 7, 2008 in Hawthorne.
• November 15, 2008 in Hawthorne.
Department of Justice, Bureau of Gambling Control, provided investigators with surveillance photos from the Commerce Casino. The photos showed the exact same suspect vehicle, following the victim from the Hustler Casino as the Mission Viejo case.
On November 30, 2008 at 2:15 am, three African American males followed a 66-year-old male victim home from the Commerce Casino to his residence in Lake Forest. The suspects pointed a gun at the victim and demanded his money. The victim refused to give them his money and the suspect proceeded to give him directions to turn around
and get on his knees, while pointing the gun at him. Fearing that he would be shot in the back, the victim ran away and dropped his money. The suspects then picked up the money and fled the area. The victim did not see a suspect vehicle.
Orange County Sheriff's Department Investigators were able to make an identification of the vehicle's license plate from the toll road photos. The suspect was identified as John Atkins (12-31-86). Atkins is currently active in the US Army and resides in Barstow.
Orange County Investigators along with DOJ conducted a weeklong surveillance of the suspect's activity and was able to identify several other subjects involved.
On Saturday December 6, 2008, Atkins and his crime partners were observed targeting a victim at the Commerce Casino and proceeded to follow the victim to his residence in the Hollywood area of Los Angeles. Orange County Investigators coordinated with patrol units from the Los Angeles Police Department and conducted a high-risk investigative stop on the suspects. The suspects in the vehicle were Jonathon Atkins and his cousins, Raymond
Little Jr. (7/31/90) and Gary Smith (3/30/88). All suspects were all arrested at 12:57 am for Robbery and onspiracy to commit Robbery. A search of the vehicle revealed a replica handgun resembling a Glock pistol, a ballistic vest and a load bearing vest.
Later that day, several members of the Orange County Sheriff's Department conducted search warrants on all three suspects' residences. No additional arrests were made; however, the investigation is still ongoing.
No photos will be released at this time, as other victims still need to be re-contacted and shown photographic line ups.
Investigation was conducted by the Orange County Sheriff's Department South Investigations. Case Agents Investigator Jared Dahl and Vanessa Anderson, coordinated the case with the assistance of 15 other investigators, Gang Unit, SWAT and Directed Enforcement Team. They also used the assistance of Department of Justice
Bureau of gambling Control, Warren Sorensen and John Park and several of their agents.
If you have any additional information or you have been victimized, please call 714-628-7170.
About the Blogger
Larry Altman has covered crime in the South Bay since 1990. He's seen it all - the missing model who turned up dead in the desert, the wives found dead in trunks, the high-school coaches who get a little too close to their players. He drives his young colleagues nuts with his "I remember when" stories. He welcomes your tips and observations about the present, and you can mix in a little Lakers basketball talk if you like.
E-mail Larry at larry.altman@dailybreeze.com.
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About the Blogger
Denise Nix knew as young as grade school, when she spent every summer working on the camp newspaper, that she wanted to be a journalist. Denise has spent most of the last 12 years of her career in the courtroom. She joined the Daily Breeze in 2001, where she tracks and reports on hundreds of cases at every level of the justice system. And she's never, ever, seen a judge use a gavel.
E-mail Denise at denise.nix@dailybreeze.com.
Twitter updates from Denise Nix
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