4 boys arrested by San Leandro police in at least 19 East Bay ATM-related armed robberies

SAN LEANDRO — Four boys, ages 16 and 17, have been arrested in at least 19 armed robberies mostly of people at or near ATM machines in different East Bay cities, police said Friday.

San Leandro police Lt. Isaac Benabou said the suspects have all admitted their involvement in many of the robberies, which began in early January in Oakland.

Benabou said Friday they were committing the robberies because it was “easy money.”

Two guns have also been recovered.

Authorities said two of the suspects are from Oakland, one from San Leandro and the other from Hayward. Their names have not been released.

They are suspected of at least 19 East Bay robberies, including four in San Leandro. Besides Oakland and San Leandro, no other cities were named because of ongoing investigations.

In one of the San Leandro robberies a man was robbed at gunpoint of cash and other valuables and his vehicle was taken by the suspects. It was found later after it was involved in a wreck and the suspects had fled.

As part of the ongoing investigations, police conducted hours of surveillance and suppression operations hoping to intercept a crime in progress, according to a news release.

According to the release, a small piece of evidence evolved into several leads. Police would only say it was a document but did say it eventually led to the discovery of a vehicle used in several of the robberies.

San Leandro police with the assistance of other agencies began surveilling the vehicle using ground and air units and K-9 units.

On Wednesday night, police followed the vehicle containing the four suspects as it drove to several communities in East Contra Costa County. At one point the suspects were observed stealing a license plate off a parked vehicle, which they put on their vehicle, the release said.

The release said the suspects then drove to several banks and began casing ATM machines. Police were ready to make arrests if they exited the vehicle but they did not. “Our plan was not to let another robbery occur,” Benabou said.

After casing several banks in East Contra Costa, the suspects then drove to Alameda County where they cased banks in Livermore and Dublin before returning to San Leandro about 10:30 p.m. Wednesday.

When they stopped at a gas station at San Leandro Boulevard and Davis Street, police decided to move in and arrest the three suspects inside the vehicle. The fourth had been dropped off earlier at his Hayward home.

One of the passengers tried to run away but was quickly arrested. A gun he had discarded during the chase was recovered. Another passenger tried to fight officers but was restrained and arrested. The driver was arrested without incident and another gun was found inside the vehicle, police said.

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Benabou said “our team conducted a phenomenal investigation, looking at every piece of evidence for the smallest lead. These are violent crimes with the potential of someone getting very seriously hurt or killed. We were shocked to find that these crimes were orchestrated by juveniles.”

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