Attempted robbery, vandalism, stolen mail: crime spree leads to arrests in Hughson
A crime spree was short-lived for two men in Hughson Monday when they were seen spray painting a dumpster and road sign after allegedly attempting to rob a man using a BB gun.
The first incident happened around 9:30 a.m. when the suspects approached a man at a liquor store at Whitmore and Santa Fe avenues and asked him if he would jump start their vehicle, said Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Sgt. Tom Letras.
The man declined and walked inside the liquor store. When he returned he saw that one of his tires had been punctured and saw the men driving away in a gray vehicle.
Letras said the victim got into his car and immediately chased after the suspects, pulling his vehicle in front of theirs at the next intersection.
The victim got out of his car to confront them and the suspect driving the gray vehicle got out wearing a ski mask and holding a firearm.
The suspect pointed the gun at the victim and demanded his money but the victim just got back into his vehicle, drove away and called police, Letras said.
Deputy Alberto Navarro took the report on the incident and as he was finishing up about an hour later heard another deputy on the radio who was handling a vandalism case two blocks away. Deputy Sanjay Prasad had two suspects in custody who Navarro recognized matched the description of the suspects in his case, Letras said.
The suspects allegedly had spray painted a dumpster and a speed limit sign in the area of Whitmore and Tully Road.
While one of them originally lied about his name, the men were eventually identified as Camron Sutton, 19, of Modesto, and Jesse Holmboe, 24, of Empire.
The victim identified Sutton as the driver of the vehicle who pointed a gun at him.
During a search, deputies discovered Sutton was in possession of mail that did not belong to him, an SNR .357 BB gun, an AR BB gun, a flat blade screwdriver, and a black marker, according to a press release.
Holmboe was also in possession of mail that did not belong to him, as well as pills he told deputies were ecstasy.
After being advised of their Miranda rights, Sutton and Holmboe admitted to mail theft and Sutton admitted to puncturing the tire of the man’s vehicle.
Sutton was arrested on suspicion of two counts of misdemeanor vandalism and mail theft. Holmboe was arrested on suspicion of possession of a controlled substance, mail theft and giving a false identification to a peace officer.
Letras said they were not booked on suspicion of attempted robbery because robbery involves force or fear and the victim in the case didn’t take the men seriously; telling them to “worry about themselves.” He said the District Attorney could still file attempted robbery charges.
