During the month of July 2013, four armed robberies occurred in the Taraval District. The suspect robbed people inside businesses and also on the street. In all the cases, the suspect brandished a handgun at the victims. Because these robberies were a series, the SFPD’s Major Crime Unit investigated these incidents.
During the investigation, Sgt. Anthony Ravano, contacted Taraval Officer Charles Chan and asked him to put a crime bulletin with a surveillance photo of the suspect in Taraval Police Station’s weekly newsletter. This newsletter is emailed to residents of the Taraval District. About a month later, Sgt. Ravano received information from a citizen who saw the crime bulletin in the newsletter. With this information, Sgt. Ravano was able to identify the suspect. The suspect was arrested for four counts of armed robbery.
With help from the public, the SFPD was able to arrest an armed robbery series suspect that was victimizing the Taraval Community.