Tucson police have arrested three men who were involved in a string of violent crimes throughout the city over the past few days.
Police say on Thursday at 11:30 p.m. two armed gunmen entered a home in the 3200 block of East Fort Lowell. The suspects entered through an unlocked front door and pointed guns at the adult male resident who was home alone.
One suspect struck the victim in the face with a handgun. The other suspect was armed with a rifle. Police say the suspects forced the victim into his bedroom where they took prescription medication and miscellaneous property before fleeing in an unknown vehicle.
The suspects were described as Hispanic men with bandanas around their faces.
On Friday at approximately 1 a.m. two adult men were walking in the area of East 1st Street and North Stewart Avenue when a dark-colored vehicle pulled up next to them.
Police say two Hispanic men exited the vehicle wearing bandanas around their faces. One of the bandanas was described as having a skull design on the front.
One of the suspects was armed with a handgun and the other was armed with a rifle. The suspects struck both victims with their guns and demanded they empty their pockets.
Police say cell phones and cash were taken from the victims. The suspects then fled in the vehicle, which was possibly being driven by a third suspect.
The vehicle had been described as a dark, Chevrolet hatchback. One of the victims suffered significant injuries that were treated at a hospital. The second victim suffered minor injuries.
Twenty minutes later, two Hispanic men entered a residence in the 200 block of North 1st Avenue. Police say the suspects entered through an unlocked door and pointed guns at six occupants inside the home.
Police say the victims were moved around the home at gunpoint while the suspects took various pieces of property, including the victim's cell phones. One suspect was armed with a handgun and the other was armed with a rifle.
Shortly after the last robbery, police say the victims used a smart phone app to track their cell phones and then shared that information with officers.
The app showed that the phones were in a specific area of an apartment complex located in the 400 block of East Prince Road.
Police say officers began watching the property and located a dark Chevrolet hatchback in the parking lot.
A suspect was seen walking from a specific apartment to the car. The vehicle had then drove out of the lot and officers made contact with the vehicle and driver on a traffic stop.
Police say the driver was wearing a bandana around his neck that had a skull design on the front.
In plain view, officers could see a magazine from a handgun and what appeared to be victim property from the robbery at North 1st Avenue. The driver was immediately detained and a warrant was obtained for the vehicle and associated apartment.
Police say TPD's SWAT Unit served the warrant on the apartment and located several individuals inside. A handgun and rifle were found inside the apartment, along with the victim's prescription medication from the first armed robbery and property from the other two armed robberies.
After authorities located evidence and conducted interviews, detectives were able to determine that 19-year-old Jeremy Wilson and 20-year-old Saul Perez Hernandez were involved in all three of the robberies.
Detectives also determined that 20-year-old Jaime Lopez was involved in at least two of the robberies.
Wilson was charged with 9 counts of Armed Robbery, 9 counts of Aggravated Robbery, 11 counts of Aggravated Assault, 9 counts of Kidnapping and 2 counts of 1st Degree Burglary.
Hernandez was charged with 9 counts of Armed Robbery, 9 counts of Aggravated Robbery, 9 counts of Aggravated Assault, 9 counts of Kidnapping and 2 counts of 1st Degree Burglary.
Lopez was charged with 7 counts of Armed Robbery, 7 counts of Aggravated Robbery, 7 counts of Aggravated Assault, 7 counts of Kidnapping, 2 counts of 1st Degree Burglary.
Police say Wilson was also linked to a separate incident and charged with two extra counts of Aggravated Assault in reference to a shooting on October 19 in the 1600 block of North Louis Lane.
All three suspects have been booked into the Pima County Jail.
