San Leandro Laptop Thief Caught, Thanks To Witness

SAN LEANDRO, CA — A man was working on his laptop at a San Leandro coffee shop Monday afternoon when a thief snatched the computer and ran outside to a waiting car. Another customer inside the coffee shop witnessed the theft and copied the suspect vehicle's license plate number as it drove away. That action by the witness was key to solving the case.

The robbery happened at around 4:20 in the afternoon. Police began searching the area immediately and shared information on the suspect vehicle with neighboring cities. The suspect vehicle was located in Oakland with four juveniles inside. All were detained.

During the investigation, the victim's laptop was found inside of a backpack of the juveniles. The 16 yr-old boy was arrested and the laptop was returned to the victim.

"The theft of laptops from coffee shop patrons is becoming a popular crime all over the Bay Area," said San Leandro Police Lieutenant Isaac Benabou. "Thankfully an observant witness was able to obtain the suspect vehicle information and provide that to the victim. Without this information, this crime may have gone unsolved."

>>Related: 8 Cuffed In Brazen East Bay Coffee Shop Electronics Thefts: Cops

Unfortunately, a laptop victim in Hercules was not as lucky. An El Sobrante woman was using her laptop in a Hercules Starbucks Saturday afternoon at 2:50 when it was stolen. Two males were involved in that theft. They ran to a waiting car driven by a woman and got away.

San Leandro Police recommend that if you use your laptop in public, get a computer cable lock to secure your device to a fixed object. It's harder to make a clean getaway when thieves are dragging a table or something else with them.

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