2 accused of stealing $100K worth of items from California luxury stores
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. – Two of four burglary suspects were arrested on Monday, accused of crashing two vehicles into luxury stores in Southern California and stealing more than $100,000 in merchandise, authorities said.
Ahmad Rahmaan, 25, and Tylise Bell, 28, both of Los Angeles were arrested and charged with commercial burglary and conspiracy to commit commercial burglary, the Los Angeles Times reported. Rahmaan was also charged with felony evading police officers.
Two other suspects remain at large, Newport Police Department spokesperson Sgt. Shawn Dugan told the newspaper.
The suspects are accused of crashing an older model Ford Explorer and a small SUV into the Neiman Marcus and Louis Vuitton stores at the Fashion Island outdoor shopping center in Newport Beach at about 3:45 a.m. PST, The Orange County Register reported.
“There were actually two separate vehicles that were driven into the building on opposite sides of the structure through the entrance doors,” Dugan said Tuesday. He added that the two stores are connected internally but both have doors leading to the outside parking area, the Times reported.
The suspects fled the scene in a third vehicle with more than $100,000 worth of high-end handbags, according to the Register.
“NBPD Officers initiated a pursuit of the suspects toward Los Angeles and the (California Highway Patrol) took over the pursuit while on the freeway,” Dugan told reporters.
While being pursued by state troopers, the suspects allegedly threw some of the stolen merchandise of of the vehicle’s window, the Register reported.
“A majority of the stolen property was recovered by our officers,” Dugan told reporters. “They’re still determining an exact loss from the store.”
The vehicle was eventually stopped in Los Angeles and the police detained Rahmaan and Bell. The two other people remain at large after fleeing from the vehicle, according to the Register.
A spokesperson for Fashion Island Tuesday declined comment, the Times reported.
