Armed robbery suspects still at large after Santa Cruz Mountains car chase, crash

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Law enforcement officials say three suspects remain at large after an armed robbery and police chase through the Santa Cruz Mountains last week.

Andrew Cavaletto, co-owner of Scotts Valley Cycle Sport, said the victim was driving the company’s mobile bike repair van July 3 and stopped to go for a bike ride around 8:15 a.m. near Highway 9 and Highway 35 in the mountains between Saratoga and Boulder Creek.

A car pulled up with one woman and two men. According to both Cavaletto and a Facebook post by the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office, the woman brandished a gun, approached the van and demanded money.

Though the company doesn’t keep money in the van, Cavaletto said the suspects did take a few bikes and some of the victim’s personal belongings.

The suspects fled the scene in their car, soon becoming involved in a pursuit after being seen in the area by a neighboring police department. Sheriff’s office spokesperson Ashley Keehn said she didn’t know which agency was involved in the chase, though the area is on the border between Santa Cruz and Santa Clara counties.

The car, which the sheriff’s office said had been stolen from the Bay Area, ended up crashing a short time later near mile marker 24 on Highway 9. The suspects fled on foot.

Officials issued a shelter-in-place order for the surrounding area, though it has since been lifted.

The three suspects were all described as 20 to 30 years old: a 120-pound man wearing glasses and a ski mask, a heavyset man wearing a black shirt and pants, and a woman wearing a Raiders windbreaker and black gloves and who might have a tattoo under her eye.

The sheriff’s office said several guns were recovered from the scene and that it is following leads as it aims to arrest the suspects.

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FOR THE RECORD: This story has been updated to clarify the number of alleged robbers.
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