MONTANA AVE — Police have arrested three men suspected of robbing a jewelry store on Montana Avenue at gunpoint.
Darveyon Terrell Davis and Delina Frank Banks, both 24 from Reno, Nev., were arrested within an hour of each other in the same residential garage on the 2000 block of Centinela Avenue on Sunday night, police say.
The third, Donya Shannon Conner, 22, also of Reno, Nev., was taken into custody Monday morning in the bathroom of a McDonald's restaurant on the 2900 block of Pico Boulevard after police found a bicycle reported stolen at 6:25 a.m. abandoned in the parking lot.
Santa Monica police received an emergency call from a witness at 4:52 p.m. Sunday who reported that three African-American men had entered Tala Jewelry on the 1300 block of Montana Avenue with a sledgehammer, and could be seen smashing display cases inside.
They also displayed a handgun, and fled with an undetermined amount of property, investigators later learned. Police have recovered the gun, and say that the effort appeared to be coordinated.
Officers responded to the location, but the suspects had fled in a white Dodge Charger, officials reported Monday.
Officers located the suspect vehicle on the east end of the city limits near Centinela and Delaware avenues and attempted to stop the car. The suspects made a quick turn and all three got out of the car and ran on foot toward the 3300 block of Exposition Boulevard, officials said.
The car was still in drive and collided with a fence, but caused no damage, said Sgt. Richard Lewis, a spokesperson for the Santa Monica Police Department.
Police established two perimeters in the area. The first was boxed in by Centinela Avenue, Dorchester Avenue, Exposition Boulevard and the Interstate 10 Freeway. The second included the area between Centinela Avenue, Carmelina Avenue, Exposition Boulevard and Pico Boulevard.
The first suspect, Davis, was found by a canine search team hiding in a residential garage on the 2000 block of Centinela Avenue at 6:30 p.m.
An hour later Banks was found in the same location.
Police closed in on the third suspect, Conner, after a resident called at 6:25 a.m. to report that an African-American male had stolen his bicycle from his back yard and was fleeing west.
Conner, Davis and Banks were booked on suspicion of kidnapping, robbery and conspiracy to commit a crime, and are being held on $1 million bail. Davis and Conner were also booked on resisting arrest.
The three men have connections to the Southern California area, police said.
Representatives from Tala Jewelry did not want to comment for this article.
The case is still under investigation. Forensic personnel have examined evidence at the jewelry store, the abandoned vehicle and the garage where Davis and Banks were found.
Investigators recovered evidence taken from Tala Jewelry and a handgun believed to have been used in the crime. This is an ongoing investigation and anyone with information regarding the robbery is asked to contact Detective Dan Larios at (310) 458-8937; Sergeant Ira Rutan at (310) 458-8959 or the Santa Monica Police Department at (310) 458-8495.
If you wish to remain anonymous, you can call WeTip at 1-800-78-CRIME (1-800-78-27463), or submit the tip online at www.wetip.com. You will remain completely anonymous and may be eligible for a reward up to $1,000 if your information leads to an arrest and conviction.
Anonymous tipsters can contact Crime Stoppers by either calling 1-(800) 222-TIPS (8477) or by visiting their website at www.lacrimestoppers.org. To text an anonymous tip to Crime Stoppers, please view their webpage for detailed instructions. If the information leads to an arrest, the tipster is eligible to receive a reward up to $1,000.
ashley@www.smdp.com
