Alameda Robbery Suspect Charged With 13 Felonies

ALAMEDA, CA - An ex-felon was charged Wednesday with 13 felony counts for allegedly robbing three businesses in Alameda at gunpoint in a 25-minute period on Sunday night.

• Previous Coverage:
• Armed Robber Fires Gun During Two of Three Robberies Sunday
• Alameda Armed Robbery Suspect Arrested in San Francisco

According to Alameda police, the alleged robberies committed by Richard Joseph Lachaux, a 27-year-old Hayward man, occurred at a Walgreens store at 2300 Otis Drive at the South Shore Center, a nearby Wells Fargo ATM at 2260 Otis Drive and at Alameda Cellars at 2425 Encinal Ave.

No one was hurt during the robberies.

The Alameda County District Attorney's Office charged Lachaux with two counts of first-degree ATM robbery, four counts of second-degree robbery, four counts of attempted second-degree robbery and one count each of assault with a semi-automatic firearm, possession of a firearm by a felon and evading a police officer.

Prosecutors also allege that Lachaux has prior convictions for being a felon in possession of a firearm in Alameda County, forgery in Los Angeles County and receiving stolen property in San Francisco.

Alameda police Officer Alex Keden wrote in a probable cause statement that after Lachaux entered the Walgreens he removed a handgun from his waistband, fired a shot into the ceiling, ordered employees and customers to the ground and then stole about $315 in cash from the register and customers as well as a customer's wallet.

Lachaux then fled and fired an additional round outside the store, according to Keden.

At the Wells Fargo ATM, Lachaux approached two customers who were depositing money and demanded that they withdraw money from the machine but became impatient and tried to withdraw the money himself and the victims were able to flee, Keden said.

At Alameda Cellars, Lachaux announced that he was committing a robbery, displayed a handgun and ordered the employee who was on duty and customers to get on the floor, according to Keden.

Lachaux then ordered the employee to give him money from the cash register and the employee, who feared for his safety, gave him $500 in cash, Keden said. He next pointed his gun at the customers as he searched through their pockets and fired one round into the air as he fled the store, Keden said.

Lachaux was arrested in San Francisco later on Sunday night and was identified as the suspect through surveillance camera footage and photo lineups that were shown to the victims, according to Keden.

--Bay City News; Image via Shutterstock