Hollister
– The Hollister Police Department arrested four teenagers in
connection with a robbery in the crowded parking lot of Premiere
Cinemas on Friday night.
Hollister – The Hollister Police Department arrested four teenagers in connection with a robbery in the crowded parking lot of Premiere Cinemas on Friday night.
Authorities believe the four teens attempted the robbery for the benefit of the Norteño street gang.
At about 8:30pm, two 14-year-old boys, a 15-year-old boy and a 16-year-old boy approached two 13-year-old Hollister boys in the theater’s parking lot, said Officer Rosie Betanio, a spokeswoman for the Hollister Police Department. One of the 14-year-old boys pulled out a small BB gun and demanded money, Betanio said.
When the 13-year-old boys told the robbers that they had no money, the 14-year-old hit one of the boys in the face with the gun, cutting his upper lip, police said. The 15-year-old boy hit the other 13-year-old boy in the mouth, Betanio said.
The would-be robbers fled the parking lot on foot, Betanio said. Officers assisted by San Benito County Sheriff’s deputies searched the neighborhood around the theater for the teens, she said.
Deputies found the teens on Alvarado Street and Chappell Road where they were arrested, police said.
Police believe the teens had planned the robbery to raise their status in the gang.
“It is a reputation thing,” Betanio said. “They have to commit certain crimes to gain a reputation.”
The teens were taken to Juvenile Hall at 11:55pm Friday.
