Originally published as a City of Palo Alto press release:
“Palo Alto, CA – Police arrested three female suspects for robbery and weapons charges after they struck and pepper sprayed a loss prevention officer during a theft at the Stanford Shopping Center Tuesday night.
On Tuesday, April 5, 2022 at around 7:30 p.m., our 24-hour dispatch center received a report of a robbery involving pepper spray that had just occurred at the Stanford Shopping Center. The preliminary investigation revealed that a Macy’s loss prevention officer had attempted to stop three women that he witnessed exiting the store with clothing for which they had not paid.
When the loss prevention officer confronted the women outside the store and requested the return of the merchandise, they refused. One of the suspects brandished a can of pepper spray and attempted to spray the victim. The other two suspects punched the victim in his face and head. Following the struggle, the suspects fled in a nearby vehicle and the victim contacted police. The victim complained of pain to his head but declined medical attention.
Responding officers located the suspect vehicle leaving the shopping center and were able to detain its occupants without incident. In addition to the three suspects, the vehicle contained three juvenile passengers, ranging in age from 7 months to 17 years. Inside the vehicle, officers located a canister of pepper spray and several articles of stolen clothing.
Police arrested and booked the three suspects into the Santa Clara County Main Jail. 22-year-old Alexis Quiroz of Sacramento was booked for felony charges of robbery, conspiracy, and being a convicted felon in possession of pepper spray. 21-year-old Salena Quiroz and 22-year-old Leah Perez, also of Sacramento, were each booked for felony charges of robbery and conspiracy. The three juveniles were released to a family member.
Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call our 24-hour dispatch center at (650) 329-2413. Anonymous tips can be e-mailed to paloalto [AT] tipnow.org or sent via text message or voice mail to (650) 383-8984.”
