Police Arrest 4 for Alleged Home Burglary in Pinole

By Bay City News Service

An alert citizen in Pinole who reported seeing potential burglars fleeing from a home with a full pillowcase led to the suspects' arrests on suspicion of burglary, police said.

Around noon on Friday, someone called police to report seeing a suspicious person standing in front of a home on Simas Avenue, followed by three more people running from a nearby home carrying a pillowcase full of items, according to police.

The suspects then reportedly got into a car and drove away from the scene, police said.

Police said officers responded to the area and spotted the suspect vehicle near the intersection of Sarah and Rebecca drives as it failed to stop at a stop sign.

Police stopped the car, searched it and found a pillowcase containing jewelry and other items. An investigation revealed the objects were taken during a burglary of a home on Simas Avenue.

Officers arrested four suspects inside the vehicle, identified as 20-year-old Elissa Garcia of Richmond, 18-year-old Oscar Lopez of Richmond, a 17-year-old San Pablo resident and another Richmond resident, 17.

The juveniles' names were not released due to their age.

Garcia and Lopez were taken to county jail in Martinez and the two juveniles were taken to Juvenile Hall.

Police said the burglary is the second incident involving the arrest of multiple home burglary suspects in Pinole over the past two weeks.

Police say the arrests point to a rise in burglaries in Pinole and throughout the region in recent months, and are encouraging residents to keep an eye out for suspicious activity in the community.

Residents are encouraged to report suspicious activity immediately to Pinole police.

Anyone with information about Friday's burglary is asked to call Detective Justin Takacs at 510-724-8944.

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