Four teenagers were arrested last week in connection with at least five armed carjackings that occurred in Southwest Dallas over the last few months.
Dallas police identified the four arrested on October 4 as 17-year-old Anthony Garcia, 17-year-old Alexander Castanon, 18-year-old Sergio Ramirez, and 19-year-old Eduardo Castillo Sanchez.
Authorities claim that the four suspects were allegedly responsible for a string of robberies.
As stated in an arrest warrant affidavit, they are accused of carrying out several robberies at gas stations, the first occurring on June 19.
At about 5:30 a.m. that morning, the group allegedly approached a man who parked a 2018 Dodge Charger near a gas pump at a QuikTrip in the 500 block of South Zang Boulevard, close to West 12th Street in Oak Cliff. Two of them allegedly drove a car, a Nissan, to a pump next to the man and robbed the man of his vehicle at gunpoint.
Police said that surveillance footage showed that at least one of the teenagers remained in the Nissan and drove away from the scene, while the rest left in the stolen Charger. The Nissan was later found abandoned in the middle of the street. Police said its license plate was stolen and there was a ski mask and another license plate inside it.
Officers were later able to track down the Charger with the help of its owner.
Per the affidavit, someone in the car allegedly had a phone, drugs, and a handgun with an extended magazine. Officers seized two phones from Ramirez, and stated that videos on Ramirez’s phone showed him driving the stolen vehicle at high speed.
Police also accused the teens of the robbery of a Lyft driver that occurred on July 29. The driver, authorities said, was waiting to pick up someone outside an apartment complex in north Oak Cliff when they approached him in ski masks and robbed him at gunpoint, stealing his wallet, cell phones, and car.
Authorities suggested that surveillance footage showed them trying to use the driver’s stolen credit cards.
Police also claimed they found evidence on Sanchez’s phone that he was planning a robbery. He reportedly told his alleged accomplice to dress in all black and not send too many texts.
The four suspects were taken into custody after Dallas police in collaboration with the FBI Violent Crime Task Force served arrest and search warrants at four locations. In addition to the suspects’ arrest, police said they recovered multiple firearms and other evidence. The suspects were booked into the Dallas County jail on September 30.
Each suspect faces two counts of aggravated robbery. Garcia’s bail is set at $250,000, Castanon’s and Ramirez’s are each set at $200,000, and Sanchez’s is set at $280,000.
Police say the case, registered under case number 163505-2022, is still under investigation.
