Four suspects have been arrested in connection with an alleged jewelry store robbery in Palm Desert, CA, and investigators are working to determine if the suspects are involved in similar incidents that have occurred throughout the area.
According to a report by Riverside Sheriff's Office Sgt. Daniel Milbrandt, at approximately 5:14 p.m. on July 25, "deputies from the Palm Desert Sheriff’s Station responded to the 72-800 block of Highway 111 in the city of Palm Desert regarding an assault with a deadly weapon. Deputies arrived and determined a jewelry store at the location had allegedly been robbed by four suspects shattering display cases with sledgehammers and glass-breaking tools," the report stated. The suspects fled the scene prior to the arrival of responding deputies.
"Witnesses saw the suspects enter a red sedan and deputies quickly located the vehicle traveling at a high rate of speed northbound on Monterey Avenue," Milbrandt wrote. "The sedan collided with another vehicle, rendering it inoperable, and the suspects fled in the area of Monterey Avenue and Dinah Shore Drive."
Police arrested 21-year-old Mason Barron of Hemet and 25-year-old Cleopatra Jones of Los Angeles, who were held at the John Benoit Detention Center in Indio. Authorities also apprehended two minors whose identities were not disclosed. Milbrandt said investigators are working to determine if the four suspects were tied to similar incidents in Riverside and Orange Counties.
Barron faces two felony charges, one charge of robbery in the first degree, and a felony charge of parole violation. He is scheduled to appear in court July 28 at the Indio Larson Justice Center. Jones faces a felony count of first-degree robbery and is being held at the Larry D. Smith Correctional Center. She is being held on a $250,000 bond, Milbrandt wrote.