SANTA ROSA – A man returning home late last night to his home in west Santa Rosa, near Lincoln Elementary School on West 9th Street, was accosted by two young men armed with a handgun, and robbed of the money he had on him.
According to a Santa Rosa police press release, at 1:21 am this morning, officers were sent to the apartment home in response to a 911 call about a robbery. The victim said he had been uploading his car on the street after returning home late that night from a family trip. As he unpacked his vehicle, two young men with bandanas covering their faces approached on foot. One pointed what appeared to be a semi-automatic handgun at him and demanded “what you bang?” The victim recognized this as a challenge to find out which gang the person belongs to, and told them he was not in any gang.
The corner of 9th and Rockwell, near where the robbery took place.
The assailants then demanded he turn over his money, which the victim did, emptying his pockets of all the cash he had. Apparently satisfied, the two then left the victim alone, and he called 911 to report the hold up.
The officers began checking the area for suspects, and soon found two young men who matched the clothing and description of the assailants. They were detained and searched. Officers found their matching bandanas, a replica semi-automatic handgun, and cash matching that taken from the victim.
Joshua Charles Woods, 25 of Santa Rosa was one of the two arrested. He is known as a convicted felon on parole with multiple encounters with law enforcement. He was arrested in February 2011 for stealing a car, along with a probation violation and driving that car with a suspended license. In June of 2012 he was arrested for robbery and violation of his post release supervision terms. In this arrest he was charged with robbery with a gang enhancement and parole violation. His accomplice was a 16-year-old boy from Lake County who was already on probation. The unidentified suspect was charged with the same crimes, though his probation violation will be handled out of his home county.
Due to the gang connection in the commission of the robbery, detectives from the Santa Rosa Police Gang Crimes Team are assisting in the follow up investigation, and are asking any other witnesses or people with information to contact them at 707-543-3670. Anonymous information about this or any gang related crime can be called to 707-543-GANG (4264).
