A 29-year-old man was arrested after allegedly robbing a Santa Paula gas station at knifepoint on Aug. 3.
Santa Paula Police Department officers responded to the Circle K convenience store and gas station in the 700 block of Harvard Boulevard around 2:20 p.m. after receiving 911 calls of a robbery in progress, according to a department news release.
The alleged robber had fled before police arrived, police said. Officers established a perimeter and located the man, a Santa Paula resident, hidden in a flood channel nearby after a police dog and the officer picked up his scent.
An initial investigation found that the Santa Paula man entered the store clad in a ski mask and allegedly used a knife to threaten two employees with harm to force them to give
him cash from the register, the department said.
After receiving the cash, he fled on foot, officials said. Police also allege that he tried to conceal the clothing and bag with cash during a search for evidence.
The man was booked into Ventura County jail on suspicion of felonies for first-degree robbery, second-degree robbery and assault with a deadly weapon, as well as four misdemeanors, jail records show. He remains in jail with bail set at $500,000.
He is scheduled to appear in Ventura County Superior Court on Aug. 14, records show.
Ernesto Centeno Araujo covers breaking news for the Ventura County Star. He can be reached at ecentenoaraujo@vcstar.com, 805-437-0224 or @ecentenoaraujo on Instagram and X.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Man arrested on charges of robbing a Santa Paula convenience store
