Crime & Safety
Update: ‘Dare Me’ Bandit Faces Nearly 30 Years in Prison
An arrest in La Mesa helped lead to his capture. A dozen stores and restaurants in the region were targeted.
Originally posted at 10:18 a.m. Monday July 15.
One of two men charged in the “Dare Me” bandit series of convenience store and fast-food robberies was set to be sentenced at the downtown courthouse Monday, but the hearing was postponed to August.
Alex Sanchez, 24, pleaded guilty to 13 robbery charges and one count of attempted robbery. He faces up to 28 years in prison.
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A trial for Sanchez' alleged accomplice, Luis Cruz, 25, who was arrested in La Mesa after allegedly targeting a liquor store, is expected to begin Aug. 27.
Sentencing for Sanchez is now set for Aug. 12.
Find out what's happening in La Mesa-Mount Helixwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Officers then passed on information about Cruz to San Diego police, who found that the man was part of the crimes.
The “Dare Me” bandit robbery series targeted a dozen businesses in San Diego and at least five others elsewhere in the county between July 22, 2012, and Sept. 24, according to San Diego police.
All the robberies were carried out at gunpoint.
The moniker stemmed from the way the robber walked into businesses with his firearm already out. In at least one case, he fired into a wall just to prove the weapon was real, police said.
– City News Service
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