Police in Berkeley, California, released footage of a 21-year-old woman being robbed of her cell phone while she was standing near the road.
The woman is looking down at the phone as a gold-colored car pulls up next to her. She briefly looks up and then again looks down at her phone.
Then, a young black male gets out of the car, looks around quickly, and grabs the woman’s phone before returning to the passenger side of the vehicle. The woman tries to fight him off, but the car quickly pulls away, dragging her several feet.
“The suspects then drove away, briefly dragging the woman in the road and nearly running her over. Fortunately, the woman was not hurt during the robbery,” police said.
The incident took place on Aug. 13 at 5:13 p.m. at Martin Luther King Jr. Way and Ashby Avenue.
He told police that the car belonged to him, admitting that he drove it during the robbery. He’s in custody and is slated to appear in court on Sept. 4.
Berkeley police said they arrested the person who they said grabbed the woman’s phone. He was identified as a 17-year-old from San Leandro.
“In a past review of street robberies, we found that over half of the victims were holding an electronic device in their hand or were walking alone,” BPD said in a statement on Aug. 30, according to the news website. “The Berkeley Police Department encourages members of the community to always remain alert and aware of your surroundings when handling/viewing their personal electronic devices.”
