PEORIA, AZ (AZFamily) – A man is facing multiple robberies after he was accused of taking cell phones from two young girls at a Peoria store.
Dominic Gonzalez, 26, of Glendale was arrested on August 22 after an investigation lasting approximately two months.
Peoria police said their investigation began on June 19 when officers were called to a Target appointment near Bell Road and 83rd Avenue in reference to a stolen cellphone.
Surveillance video allegedly shows Gonzalez filming a young girl with his cell phone. As they left the store, Gonzalez allegedly violently snatched the cell phone she was using from her hand. Since the phone was in use, it was “unlocked,” allowing Gonzalez to access the phone’s contents.
According to police, Gonzalez then ran out of the store and fled in a black Toyota Corolla.
On August 12, another person reported that their cell phone was stolen from the same store. A woman and a young girl were shopping together when the woman reported that a man “snatched” the girl’s cell phone from her hand. The man then ran out of the store and fled in a black Toyota Corolla.
Police said surveillance footage from Target showed Gonzalez waiting for the victims to use their phones so they were unlocked before taking the phones out of their hands. Peoria police said the phones did not appear to be resold and Gonzalez likely stole them to have access to the phone’s contents.
Gonzalez was taken into custody on August 22 and allegedly admitted to police that he “took those two phones.” A search warrant for his apartment found the same clothing he was wearing on surveillance video.
Through a criminal history check, police determined that Gonzalez was a registered sex offender after being found guilty of sexual contact with a minor and sexual abuse in 2018.
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