Man arrested for stealing bottle of soda
■A man was arrested on April 21 for stealing a can of soda at a local restaurant. On Sunday April 21, at about 3 p.m., a guy walked into Bay Cities Deli on the 1500 block of Lincoln Boulevard, took a bottle of soda from the refrigerator, stuck it in his coat pocket and attempted to leave the store. An employee who witnessed the act stopped the suspect from leaving. The man with the soda began to fight, so a second employee joined the fray. When Santa Monica Police arrived, the employees had the suspect in custody.
Police arrested Michael Welch, 22, for attempting to steal a soda worth $1.59. ■Two convenient store owners were robbed at gunpoint this month. At about 8 p.m. on Monday, April 15, an owner of the MiniMart on the 600 block of Marine Street stood outside the store while he watched two men get out of a black car and enter the store. Inside, the two men showed hand guns to the other owner behind the counter. One of the suspects demanded money from the register, while the other walked outside, showed his gun to the owner standing there, and told him to get in the store and stay there. The owners handed over about $200, and the two suspects took off on foot. The black car was no longer there.
The first suspect is described as a black male, 21-24 years old, 5’ 8” to 5’ 10” with a thin build and wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and black pants.
The second suspect is described as a black male, 18-21 years old, 5’ 5” with a thin build and also wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and dark pants. ■A man wearing a bright Hawaiian shirt robbed Poncho’s Tacos this month. On Wednesday April 17 at 2:35 p.m. a man wearing a red, black and white floral print Hawaiian shirt walked into Pancho’s Tacos on the 2900 block of Lincoln Boulevard. The man approached the employee behind the counter, flashed a hand gun and demanded the money from the register. The employee handed over the cash, and the man took off west on Pier Avenue.
The suspect is described as an 18-year-old black male, 5’2”, 130 pounds, with a disfigured right eye. ■A man was robbed at gunpoint this month while he was sitting in his car at a red light.
At 10:45 a.m. on Wednesday, April 17, a man driving down Pico Boulevard stopped for a red light at 33rd Street. While sitting at the light, a man walked up to his window, showed him a handgun and demanded his money. The suspect grabbed the cash out of the man’s hand and ran west on Pico Boulevard.
The suspect is described as a black male, 20 years old, 6’0”, 155 pounds, wearing a dark jogging outfit.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on May 2, 2002. Read the original PDF.