Two South Pasadena Residents Arrested for Allegedly Robbing Craigslist iPhone Purchaser

Los Angeles Sheriff's deputies arrested two South Pasadena residents after a five-hour stakeout in front of a South Pasadena apartment Friday evening. The suspects allegedly robbed a Lawndale man who answered their Craigslist ad to buy an iPhone, officials said today.

The suspects, Daniel So, 19, and Garrett Helstrom, 20, allegedly robbed the victim of $500 in cash in a Temple City restaurant parking lot February 19, according to Sgt. Steve Kim of the LA Sheriff's Department. The victim brought the cash to pay for the iPhone, and So allegedly pointed what looked like a handgun and demanded the cash. The victim handed over the $500 and fled, and did not suffer any injuries, Sgt. Kim said.

The Sheriff's Department followed up on leads, and investigators used information gathered from the Craigslist ad to determine the identity of the suspects. "The victim picked up the suspect in a photo lineup," Sgt. Kim said.

Sgt. Kim and other deputies staked out the apartment complex where the suspect resides with his parents. After they saw the suspect enter a vehicle with a white male and drive away, deputies conducted a traffic stop and made the arrests. They found an exact replica of a semi-automatic handgun and suspected stolen property inside the vehicle, Sgt. Kim said. Sheriff's officials said the vehicle belonged to Helstrom.

"We believe this replica was used in the robbery," Sgt. Kim said. "It's the exact size and looks real." The gun is a bb gun and had bb ammunition loaded inside along with a charged CO2 canister, according to Sgt. Kim.

The victim described one of the suspects as Asian, which led investigators from the Asian Gang Team to get involved with the case. Sgt. Kim said So is allegedly associated with an Asian gang called the Asian Criminals, a Korean gang based in Los Angeles. "An associate may not be a full member of that gang, but hangs out with gang members," Sgt. Kim said. However, according to Sgt. Kim, the suspect, So, had tattoos that were "indicative of gang members,"

Sgt. Kim spoke to So's parents after the arrest. "They were very surprised," he said. "He had been in trouble in the past, but not to this extent," the suspect's parents told Sgt. Kim. "They had a tough time believing he could be involved."

According to Sgt. Kim, So has a pending petty theft case out of the Torrance area, but no other records.

The suspects are being held at Temple Sheriff's station on $100,000 bail each. Their arraignment is scheduled for Tuesday morning at Alhambra Court House.

According to Captain Mike Parker of the Sheriff's Headquarters Bureau, investigators believe that So and Helstrom may have committed similar robberies in the San Gabriel Valley area. 

Sgt. Kim said they are already investigating a lead on one of the stolen items recovered from the vehicle in cooperation with another San Gabriel Valley police agency. He could not comment on the exact location of that lead.