Police recovered a gun believed to have been used in three armed robberies in Cathedral City over the weekend, a lieutenant said.
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On Sunday, Cathedral City police arrested Desert Hot Springs residents George Alfredo Avilez, 20, and a 17-year-old boy in connection with the robberies, two of which involved shootings.
Police found the firearm when they served a search warrant at 6:40 p.m. Sunday in the 68500 block of Hermosillo Road, Cathedral City police Lt. Earl Moss said.
The crime spree began about 10:15 p.m. Saturday, when a man was held up in the 67300 block of Verona Road. Police said the victim ran away and the suspects fired one shot, narrowly missing the victim but hitting his truck, Sgt. Scott Sharpe said.
The second incident was 15 minutes later, in the 29700 block of Avenida La Vista. A victim handed the suspect his wallet, but the suspect nevertheless fired a shot at the victim, striking the passenger door of the victim’s truck near where he was standing, the sergeant said.
The third robbery was shortly after 1 a.m. Sunday in the 29300 block of Avenida La Paz. There, the suspect demanded a woman’s purse as she got out of her car, and ran away when she told him she had no money, Sharpe said.
An officer spotted the alleged getaway car and arrested the suspects around 3 a.m. Sunday on Landau Boulevard. The officer saw evidence in the car linking the occupants to the three robberies and a residential burglary, Sharpe said.
“Several of the robbery victims were brought to the scene and positively identified the suspects,” he said.
Avilez and the teenager were arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, armed robbery and residential burglary.
The teenager was taken to Juvenile Hall and Avilez was booked at the county jail in Indio, where he was being held in lieu of $105,000 bail. He was expected to be arraigned Wednesday at the Larson Justice Center in Indio, according to jail records.
Sunday’s search warrant turned up the 26th firearm that has been recovered and or removed from suspects in the last three weeks in Cathedral City, according to Moss.
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