Three San Francisco residents were arrested after police say they stole merchandise from the Spirit Halloween store in Pacifica's Fairmont Shopping Center and pushed an employee to the ground on Oct. 21, according to the Pacifica Police Department, as reported by Local News Matters and Hoodline.
Why it matters: Seasonal Halloween stores are busy right now, and police say witnesses and a license plate reader helped them track down the suspects.
What happened
Officers responded at about 12:14 p.m. to a report of a robbery in progress at the store, Local News Matters reported. Employees told police that three people took merchandise and shoved a worker to the ground before running off. The employee suffered injuries that were not life-threatening, police said.
Witnesses gave police the license plate number of the getaway vehicle, Hoodline reported.
How police found the suspects
An automated license plate reader later flagged the vehicle in a neighboring jurisdiction. Pacifica police worked with that agency, and the three suspects, a 22-year-old and two 24-year-olds, were taken into custody. Officers also recovered the stolen merchandise, according to police.
All three were booked into Maguire Correctional Facility in Redwood City. Hoodline, citing The Mercury News, reported that two were arrested on suspicion of robbery and criminal conspiracy, and the third on shoplifting and conspiracy allegations. The Mercury News also reported that the three no longer appeared to be in custody as of Friday.
What's next
Police are asking anyone with information about the robbery to contact the Pacifica Police Department. The charges are allegations, and none of the suspects has been convicted.