Four teens arrested, linked to 19 East Bay robberies

Four teenagers have been arrested on suspicion of robbing 19 people in San Leandro and Oakland during the month of January, police said.

The first robbery was reported in early January outside an ATM in downtown Oakland. The youths went on to rob 18 more people, including four people in San Leandro, according to police.

Detectives were able to link an address and vehicle to the crimes.

On Wednesday, a team of detectives tracked the vehicle as four suspects drove to a number of locations in east Contra Costa County and Alameda County.

Detectives eventually moved in on the suspects to arrest them. One of the suspects was armed, and a second gun was found in the vehicle, according to Benabou.

All of the suspects were 16 and 17 years old, Benabou said. “These are violent crimes with the potential of someone getting very seriously hurt or killed,” Benabou said in a statement. “We were shocked to find that these crimes were orchestrated by juveniles.”

The teens were arrested and booked into juvenile hall in Alameda County.