Two separate Bay Area bridge toll booths were held up at gunpoint Sunday (we mentioned it in brief here), and the California Highway Patrol has released surveillance video showing that the vehicle and the suspects in both robberies are both complete matches. The Examiner reports that a black Mercedes “with CarMax paper license plates and distinctive chrome accents” robbed a Carquinez Bridge toll booth at 4 a.m. Sunday morning, and then a similarly described vehicle with two similarly described suspects pulled the exact same heist on the Bay Bridge between 2 and 3 p.m. Sunday afternoon.
KRON 4 has surveillance video of both robberies, and the Bay Bridge toll heist is embedded above. It’s pretty alarming to see firsthand how these robberies actually go down (The toll booth operator hands over the entire cash drawer register! Some of the cash flies off in the wind!) But it’s obviously a terrifying experience for the toll booth operators, and the suspects described as two African-American men both donning hoodies and blue or purple latex gloves both remain at large.
“These individuals face charges of robbery, they face charges of grand theft and of brandishing a weapon,” CHP officer Jonathan Fransen told CBS 5.
Both bridges have been hit with previous armed robberies this year, and multiple similar robberies in previous years according to KRON 4. Sunday’s two incidents were the third and fourth bridge holdups this year. There were five toll booth robberies in 2016, and an alarming 14 toll robberies in 2015. One single suspect is considered to be responsible for 11 of those robberies, and that suspect was apprehended and arrested.
“It’s not just the toll collector that was put in jeopardy; it was also the potential motorists passing by,” Fransen said. “So collectively, as a community, we ask that anyone who saw anything to not hesitate to contact us.”
You can contact California Highway Patrol investigators by calling 707-551-4100 if you have any information on the vehicle or the drivers.
Related: Yet Another RV Driver Slams Into Golden Gate Bridge Toll Booth
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