Two armed robbery suspects are in custody following an hours-long standoff with police and SWAT at a home in Imperial Beach.
Chula Vista Police (CVPD) officers surrounded a home on the 1600 block of Donax Avenue near 16th Street at around 1 p.m. after the suspects committed two robberies in Chula Vista and IB.
One suspect, a male, was taken into custody with the help of a police canine at around 4:30 p.m. after slipping out of the back door of the home. CVPD says the man was armed with two guns, neither considered deadly, when he was arrested.
"One was an airsoft gun which looked exactly like a real .45 caliber handgun," CVPD Captain Fritz Reber said. "The other was what looked like a CO2-type BB gun."
He was taken to an area hospital for treatment.
The second suspect, a female, remained inside the home for some time as CVPD, deputies and SWAT units were staged outside. Contact was made with the suspect but she refused to surrender.
Just after 6 p.m., SWAT personnel threw a distractionary device inside the home, forced their way in and apprehended the woman.
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According to CVPD Captain Fritz Reber, the pair attempted to rob a Chula Vista perfume store earlier on Friday before they were stopped by store employees. That’s when the male suspect reportedly brandished his replica gun and the two fled the store.
A witness to the attempted robbery called 911 and followed the suspects from a safe distance as they drove away.
Before police say they could find them, the suspects stopped at what officers called an adult store in IB, just a few blocks away from the home on Donax Avenue, and committed a second robbery.
Police are still investigating why the two suspects ended up at that exact home in IB. It is unclear of either of the suspects are residents of the home.
The standoff caused a road closure on 16th Street between Dahlia Avenue and Elm Avenue. The road reopened shortly after the second arrest.
"Luckily I got in just before they taped everything off," said nearby resident Stephanie Estrada. "My neighbors are all texting me 'What's going on?' and we're all wondering what's happening here, and, you know, it just effects everything because you can't leave."
"It's just kind of crazy that it happened right here, but I feel safe. I have my dogs, so I wasn't too worried."
