LOS ANGELES — Authorities said they are searching for a suspect after six 7-Eleven stores in Southern California were robbed, leaving two people dead and three others injured. Authorities believe at least three of the robberies are related.
The robberies took place in Brea, La Habra, Riverside, Upland, Santa Ana and Ontario, all within five hours early Monday. 7-Eleven encouraged locations across Southern California to close Monday night following the robbery shootings.
“Our hearts are with the victims and their loved ones. We are gathering information on this terrible tragedy and working with local law enforcement,” 7-Eleven said in a statement obtained by KTLA-TV Channel 5. “Right now, our focus is on Franchisee, associate and customer safety. With that in mind, we have encouraged stores in the Los Angeles area to close tonight.”
The robberies in Brea, Santa Ana and La Habra — and possibly more — may be connected, said Chris Harvey, a lieutenant with the Brea Police Department.
Harvey said the shootings in Brea, Santa Ana and La Habra have a similar description for the male suspect. The suspect was last seen wearing dark clothing and a dark-colored mask and fled prior to officers arriving at the scene.
Police said they are aware of similar robberies throughout the region and are working to determine whether they are related.
Santa Ana police responded to reports of a shooting at 3:25 a.m. Monday outside of a 7-Eleven store in the 300 block of E. 17th Street.
According to police, 24-year-old Matthew Rule, a resident of Santa Ana, was shot in the parking lot. He suffered a gunshot wound to the upper body and was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.
Police said the suspect never seemed to enter the store and it appears that he robbed Rule. It is unclear whether Rule was a customer of the 7-Eleven or why he was at the location.
Brea police responded to a robbery shooting at 4:17 a.m. at the 7-Eleven on West Lambert Road and North Brea Boulevard. Once police arrived at the scene, they said they found the store clerk, 40-year-old Matthew Hirsch, fatally shot. He died at the scene, Harvey said.
Shortly after, at 4:55 a.m., La Habra police responded to a robbery at the 7-Eleven on East Whittier Boulevard, where police found two victims with gunshot wounds, according to a news release. Both victims were taken to a hospital by Los Angeles County Fire Department paramedics.
La Habra police said both victims — the clerk and a customer — are expected to survive.
“There were several 7-Eleven robberies and a handful of them had shootings as well,” Harvey said. “The initial belief is that ours and La Habra’s, and Santa Ana’s are all connected, but that’s not confirmed yet and I assume there’s going to be more.”
Another robbery shooting occurred at 1:50 a.m. in Riverside. A customer was shot at the 7-Eleven in the 5100 block of La Sierra Avenue, according to Riverside Police Department Officer Ryan Railsback.
“The suspect produced a handgun and robbed the clerk,” Railsback said. “The customer was up near the front. After robbing the clerk — for unknown reasons — the suspect shot this customer.”
The victim was treated by paramedics from the Riverside Fire Department and taken to a local hospital, according to a news release. The victim, who is in his 40s, is currently in grave condition, according to Railsback.
Investigators are gathering information about the other 7-Eleven robberies, but they are not yet able to confirm any connection to other similar robberies in the area, Railsback said.
Two other robberies occurred at other 7-Eleven locations in Upland and Ontario. The first robbery took place in Ontario. Police were called to the 7-Eleven at 636 N. Vine Ave. following reports of a robbery just after midnight, according to a news release.
“During the robbery, the suspect displayed a handgun and demanded money from the employee,” Ontario police said in the news release. “However, the suspect did not fire the handgun and the victim was not injured in the incident.”
About 40 minutes after the Ontario robbery, police responded to another robbery in Upland at the 7-Eleven store at 2410 W. Arrow Route.
Anyone with information regarding the robbery shootings is encouraged to reach out to Brea Police Department Det. Alfred Rodriguez at (714) 671-4438 or alfredr@cityofbrea.net.
