Police are investigating a string of similar robberies in local beach communities and are trying to determine whether the crimes are related.
Armed robbers, in three separate incidents, demanded belongings from three victims as they parked their cars in front of their homes on Tuesday night.
The first incident happened at approximately 8:34 p.m. on the 4300 block of Monaco Street near Amiford Drive in Sunset Cliffs.
According to the San Diego Police Department, a 55-year-old woman parked her car in front of her home and was beginning to exit her vehicle when she was approached by a man asking if she had seen his lost dog.
While the two were talking, a second man donning a ski mask approached, drew a handgun and demanded her personal items. The masked man then pulled a necklace off of the victim’s neck and removed a ring from her finger.
Dawna Kirbey, the sister of the victim, was on the phone with her while it all unfolded.
“It’s scary, you know?” Kirbey said. “I couldn’t sleep last night. I had to shut all my windows. I thought ‘Oh, God, is someone going to come in?’ Every time you hear a noise you’re nervous. So, yeah, I’m still frazzled.”
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Luckily for the victim, the necklace broke during the ordeal and it, and the ring, fell to the floor of the car and was later found by police. Kirbey says her sister’s jewelry held sentimental value.
“Her husband passed away and it was the diamond engagement ring from him, so it meant everything to her.”
Both of the men fled on foot westbound on Monaco Street toward Amiford Drive. One suspect was described as a black male in his 30s, 5 feet 8 to 5 feet 10 inches with a medium build. The second suspect was described as a black male, 5 feet 10 to 6 feet tall with a stocky to heavy build. Both men were wearing dark clothing.
Minutes later at approximately 8:39 p.m. on the 1500 block of Ebers Street in Ocean Beach, less than two miles away, a 36-year-old man was robbed while walking from his car to his front door.
Police say the man was approached by a black man asking if he had seen his lost pit bull. Soon after, a second black man wearing a ski mask approached, chambered a round in his handgun and pointed it at the victim. The victim surrendered his cell phone and wallet to the second black man, before the first black man pulled his backpack off of him.
The two men took off on foot into the alley north of the victim’s home. Both suspects were described as wearing dark colored clothing.
While the proximity of the crimes, and the bit about the lost dog, lead police to believe the two crimes are related, they do not believe that the pair of robberies is connected to an almost identical armed robbery that happened later in the evening in La Jolla.
In the third incident, police say a 60-year-old La Jolla man pulled into his garage at around 9:21 p.m. and was about to enter his home on the 1300 block of Virginia Way when three black males wearing ski masks, two of whom were armed with handguns, approached him and demanded his property. The victim gave up his watch, cell phone and briefcase and watched the group flee on foot.
SDPD Western Division detectives are investigating the robberies in Sunset Cliffs and Ocean Beach, while Robbery Detectives are working the case in La Jolla.
Authorities say that none of the victims were injured.
