A man and woman who used a stun gun to steal a woman’s purse in the parking lot of a Toys “R” Us store in La Mesa have been arrested, police confirmed.
The La Mesa Police Department (LMPD) said suspects Dante Bahena, 18, and Katrina Frederickson, 24, were arrested Wednesday on several charges, including robbery and conspiracy to commit a crime.
Police said the suspects used a stun gun on Nov. 5 to attack a woman while snatching her purse as she walked to her car in the parking lot of a Toys “R” Us store located at 8790 Grossmont Dr.
The victim, in her 50s, had just finished shopping at the toy store. As she walked through the parking lot, police said Bahena tried to pull her purse from her shoulder. The victim and Bahena struggled, and then Bahena used a stun gun to finally force the woman to give him her bag.
The woman suffered minor injuries in the robbery, but was not hospitalized, investigators said.
The LMPD said Bahena fled the parking lot with the stolen purse in a getaway car driven by Frederickson. Both suspects are transients, police said, and had been living out of the car.
Following the robbery, the suspect used the victim’s credit cards at several businesses in the South Bay. Investigators were ultimately able to trace the identities of the suspects and a countywide BOLO alert was issued across law enforcement agencies.
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On Wednesday evening, a deputy with the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department located the duo in their car on State Route 94 and College Avenue. La Mesa detectives responded and took the suspect into custody.
Both Bahena and Frederickson were slated to appear in court Friday afternoon.
