Thieves Fake Illness and Call Rideshare to Escape Crime Scene
In the last year, there have been a plethora of stories about thieves going into stores stealing massive amounts of merchandise, and fleeing on foot. This story is somewhat similar but with some interesting twists.
About a week ago, four people were accused of going into a Macy's store in Brea, California, and making off with handfuls of merchandise according to KTLA. There was a getaway car waiting outside for these suspects, but due to one of the suspect's suspicious activities earlier in the day, police were outside of the store.
The suspects sped off, and the officers began chasing them in a high-speed chase. Officers told media outlets that eventually the suspects were able to break away from the chase and ditch the car.
The story then takes another weird and interesting turn.
The suspects, thinking they were in the clear from the cops, went into a dental office. One of the suspects decided to order a rideshare car to get them safely away, but it was taking some time.
So, what happens next? It's like a bad movie. One of the suspects then allegedly starts pretending she is having a heart attack. That's when the dentist jumped into the situation to render medical aid. Officials say as the rideshare car drew closer the woman popped up from the floor claiming she felt much better and ran outside.
This is like a movie. The suspects, thinking they were in the clear, were then stopped by patrol cars that had caught up to them. Everyone was arrested, but thankfully, the rideshare driver who had nothing to do with the crimes allegedly committed by the four suspects was released.
A quote from the KTLA article about this incident follows:
Police said rideshare drivers getting unknowingly roped into criminal schemes happens more often than people might think.
Wow! That sounds terrifying.
Brea Police Lieutenant Chris Harvey says,
It's never a pleasant experience, obviously, to have the police detain you at gunpoint and think you are a suspect of something when you're not.
To add another piece of information to this story, police say earlier in the day someone called the police saying that there was an armed robbery happening at a bank. Officials say it was likely one of the four suspects trying to draw attention away from what they were about to do at the mall.
It is a story with many twists and turns, and it ends with four suspects being arrested.