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Deputies
Nab Serial Robber
Local gang
member charged with 19 felony counts
By
Allison Jean Eaton
Bulletin
Staff Writer
COMPTON – An
alleged gangbanging robber who terrorized a particular shopping center
in the 3rd District is behind bars following a months-long investigation,
authorities said.
Yves Larue Brown, 21, of Compton was arrested Aug. 7 at approximately
5 a.m. in connection with 14 robberies he allegedly committed between March
and July, said Compton Station Detective Nader Chachine.
His arrest was the culmination of a five-month investigation spearheaded
by Chachine, who has worked at Compton Station for six years.
Brown, a member of a local Crips set, allegedly committed his first
robbery on March 8 when he held up a beauty store. The second robbery took
place March 13 at a neighboring discount store. That same store was hit
again April 2.
It was after this robbery that Chachine realized he was dealing with
a single suspect.
“After the third one, I realized it was the same person based on
surveillance footage,” Chachine said.
The suspect had the same M.O.: A Black male wearing a black hooded
sweatshirt with the hood up and a bandana covering his face enters the
location armed with a black handgun, points it at the victim and demands
money.
Authorities said Brown continued to hit small businesses, all of
which are just blocks away from his residence. The beauty store Brown allegedly
first robbed was eventually hit again, and the discount store was targeted
seven additional times for a total of nine robberies.
Chachine said the owner of that store is so afraid after being repeatedly
robbed at gunpoint that he refuses to work in the store any longer.
Brown’s 14 robberies grossed him a total of nearly $3,000. Authorities
are still not sure whether the money was used by Brown himself or to further
his gang’s activities.
None of the money was recovered, Chachine said.
During the arrest, which was made at Brown’s home, the gun in question
was not recovered. However, Brown cooperated and informed deputies where
the mini Tech-9 was stashed.
“He knew the exact location and the person he left it with,” Chachine
said.
Authorities eventually learned that the weapon had already been confiscated
during a separate raid, Chachine said.
All but two of the locations Brown targeted were in the same shopping
center, authorities said. Because they fear Brown’s fellow gang members
could retaliate against his alleged victims, who will have to testify against
him, the Sheriff’s Department asked that The Bulletin not print the
names or exact locations of the victim businesses.
Getting a positive I.D. on the suspect was initially difficult.
“Throughout the five months, I eliminated suspects and locations,” Chachine
said. “We even used our Major Crimes (Bureau) surveillance team.
Through citizen informants, witnesses and eventually some victims,
we were finally able to ID the person.”
The identification took several months because area residents were
reluctant to work with law enforcement officials, likely because they feared
reprisal from Brown’s gang.
“That’s why it was pretty hard to try and identify who this
person was,” Chachine said.
Eventually Chachine was able to obtain Brown’s gang moniker from
a suspect arrested on unrelated charges, and from there it was only a matter
of time before a positive identification was made two weeks ago.
“The investigation was pretty intense,” he told The Bulletin. “Our
main concern was that someone would get hurt during the robberies.
When you have an investigation that’s this serious, you think about
it a lot. You take it home with you, and it can get pretty emotional.
“At one particular location, (there were) children in the store,” Chachine
said. “There were families in there shopping (when Brown allegedly
robbed the store). These robberies made a really big impact on that
community.”
In addition to the 14 counts of robbery Brown was charged with Monday,
Aug. 11, he also faces five counts of gang enhancements, said Compton Station
Detective Bureau Sgt. Kerry Carter.
Brown remains behind bars, where he will likely stay because his
bail was set at more than $3 million, Chachine said.
A preliminary hearing was set for Aug. 25 .
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