Modesto police make arrests in grand thefts and robberies from Sunglass Hut
MODESTO, Calif. May 23 2022 The Modesto Police Department Property Crimes Unit has been investigating repeated grand thefts and robberies from the Sunglass Hut at the Vintage Faire Mall.
Detectives conducted surveillance on who they believed to be the main suspect in the investigation on Thursday, May 19th around 4:30 p.m.
According to Modesto Police, surveillance showed the the suspect arrive as a passenger in a stolen Acura SUV at the Vintage Faire Mall.
Three people exited the Acura and entered the mall with masks and hoods over their heads.
As they were being watched by mall security, the three were quickly met by employees that recognized them and stood in the entrance to try and block their entry into Sunglass Hut.
They then walked away and went inside the nearby Macy’s. In there the three stole around $10,800 worth of cologne and other merchandise.
As they attempted to get to their SUV, detectives surrounded them, one suspect was hit by a bean bag and then tasered after repeatedly trying to escape the scene. He was then taken into custody along with the other two suspects.
The main suspect in the investigation was identified as 25-year-old Corey Wyatt of Vallejo. The driver of the was 22-year-old Rayquan Murray of San Leandro and the third person was 19-year-old Jada Aikens of San Francisco.
A loaded firearm was found in the stolen vehicle used in the incident.
According to Modesto Police, Wyatt’s recent activity in Modesto began on April 27 with a burglary/grand theft from Sunglass Hut at Vintage Faire Mall. He and his accomplices arrived in a cold plated Honda Accord. They would park, enter the mall with bags, fill them with items, and run to their vehicle and leave.
Wyatt and two or three others arrived in another cold plated Honda Accord and repeated the same thing as on April 27. A woman suspect, yet to be identified, had one of her bags grabbed by mall security. The two forcibly took the bag back from the security guard before escaping.
On May 12, Wyatt, along with a few others, arrived at the mall in a Toyota Camry that was reported stolen out of Atwater. The group stole merchandise from Sunglass Hut again.
As a result of this ongoing investigation, Wyatt was arrested and charged with two counts of robbery, five counts of burglary, five counts of conspiracy, grand theft, resisting arrest, vehicle theft, possession of stolen property, and felon in possession of a firearm.
Murray was arrested and charged with burglary, conspiracy, grand theft, resisting arrest, felon in possession of a firearm, vehicle theft, and possession of stolen property.
Aikens was arrested and charged with burglary, conspiracy, grand theft, and robbery.
Wyatt also had six warrants out of several other counties for similar crimes and was wanted for burglary, conspiracy and robbery by Manteca Police, Walnut Creek Police, San Francisco Police, Alameda County Sheriff’s Department, and Monterey Police.
Detectives were successful in seeking a bail enhancement on Wyatt for $500,000. He is responsible for stealing over $100,000 worth of merchandise from Sunglass Huts around the state according to Sunglass Hut’s Loss Prevention.
Currently it is unclear whether Aikens and Murray were involved in the previous Sunglass Hut thefts but detectives are still investigating to find out.
KTXL
