The man who wore a “Joker” mask to a motel armed robbery and shot a clerk has been arrested, El Cajon police announced Friday.
Charles Douglas Winzer, 24, barged into the Quality Inn and Suites on El Cajon Boulevard on Tuesday armed with a shotgun, according to police.
He demanded money from the 31-year-old clerk, but when the employee tried to run away, detectives say Winzer shot him in the lower back. The victim was taken to the hospital for non-life threatening injuries.
Empty-handed, Winzer ran to the parking lot, where his brother Christopher James Winzer, 22, was waiting in a getaway truck, the ECPD says.
The police search for the suspects prompted the Grossmont High School administration to lock down the school Tuesday afternoon. However, officers could not find the would-be robber responsible for the shooting.
Investigators turned to witnesses and surveillance video to find their suspects. They soon learned a red Chevy pickup was used as the getaway vehicle.
The truck was discovered Wednesday at the Villa Embasadora Hotel in El Cajon, which led officers to the man who matched descriptions of the suspect. Charles Winzer was arrested on suspicion of narcotics offenses and was taken to the ECPD.
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Detectives later booked him into jail on attempted murder, robbery and assault with a deadly weapon charges, stemming from the motel hold-up.
Christopher Winzer was arrested Thursday on suspicion of robbery and accessory to a felony.
Investigators say the weapon used in the robbery has been recovered and there are no outstanding suspects.
