ST. GEORGE — A suspect reportedly connected to a gang-related homicide in California and a robbery in St. George is in custody facing seven first-degree felony robbery and kidnapping charges following his arrest Tuesday.
St. George Police, in concert with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Marshals Office, arrested 25-year-old Robert Andrew Sanchez, who was wanted in connection with a robbery reported shortly after 10 p.m. May 4. (See editor’s note).
According to court documents filed in support of the arrest, during the May 4 incident, Sanchez approached a vehicle with four occupants inside in the parking lot of a yogurt shop on South River Road. He then reportedly opened the rear door of the vehicle, pointed a “Glock-style” gun with a green laser at two female occupants sitting in the backseat and told them to “move over.”
Sitting in the backseat, the suspect then reportedly ordered the driver to drive to a different location while demanding money from the occupants. The suspect also held the muzzle of the gun to the passenger’s head, and then jammed the firearm into the right thigh of the driver, as he continued demanding money, identification and financial cards from the group, the report states.
According to authorities, Sanchez also held the gun to the stomach of the woman he was seated next to in the backseat multiple times, and each of the victims either had the gun pressed against them or pointed at them as the demands were being made.
“This was known due to the laser on the gun being turned,” the officer noted, which revealed the direction in which the firearm was aimed.
The suspect reportedly took money from one of the passengers, along with three cellphones, bank cards and a driver’s license. He also reportedly told the occupants he was taking their cellphones because he “didn’t want them calling anyone.”
The suspect then fled from the vehicle and appeared to head south on foot. The police were then contacted.
The suspect was described as a Hispanic man with a heavier build who wore a hooded jacket with a logo on it as well a neck-gaiter mask over his face that kept slipping down as he spoke, which revealed he possibly had a mustache.
The following day, officers received bank statements showing one of the stolen debit cards was used at several locations, including a $600 withdrawal at a local credit union within two hours of the incident. It was also used at a bar shortly after midnight, and another $200 was withdrawn at an ATM during that same time, as well as other purchases made shortly thereafter.
Officers obtained video footage of the transactions, as well as a copy of the California driver’s license that was scanned by one of the merchants, which identified the suspect who made one of the withdrawals as Sanchez.
Once officers obtained a photo of the suspect from California and compared it to the scanned ID photo, the two matched. Detectives also collected video surveillance from the bank and surrounding businesses that showed a man who matched the suspect’s description taking money out of the ATMs.
Officers also obtained footage of the suspect walking in the direction of the passenger car with the four occupants sitting inside, and shortly thereafter he is seen walking up to the first ATM machine. Detectives also learned that Sanchez was known to drive a Nissan with California plates, a vehicle that matched the one in the footage captured shortly after the incident.
Officers located a Glock firearm secured in a holster that was stuffed in the waistband of Sanchez’s shorts that was equipped with a laser and consistent with the one described by the victims. Officers also recovered narcotics during a search of the suspect’s wallet.
During a search of the residence on South 400 East, officers recovered clothing that matched the items seen in the surveillance footage captured during the May 4 incident. They also located the neck gaiter allegedly worn during the incident stuffed in a trash can.
The report also states detectives recovered several receipts from the transactions at the ATM machines.
During an interview with police, the suspect allegedly said he used the bank card at the bar but denied making any ATM withdrawals and said he was not involved in the robbery, claiming others were involved.
Those claims were not supported by video footage later collected by police that showed the suspect earlier that same evening wearing the same clothing as was seen in the footage during the robbery, the report states.
The suspect was arrested and transported to Purgatory Correctional Facility facing four first-degree felony charges, including three counts of aggravated kidnapping and four counts of aggravated robbery. He also faces five counts of aggravated assault with a weapon and acquiring a financial card without consent – each a third degree felony, as well as four misdemeanor offenses that include a concealed weapon, paraphernalia and drugs.
Authorities say Sanchez is known to evade police and was involved in a gang-related homicide in California involving a firearm, a state the suspect lived in as recently as a few months ago.
As such, Sanchez remains in custody on the above-listed charges and is being held without bail.
This report is based on statements from court records, police or other responders and may not contain the full scope of findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.
Ed note: On first publish, this report incorrectly identified the circumstances and location of the suspect’s arrest.
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