A gun-wielding man who took a pickup truck from a husband-and-wife cleaning crew at a La Jolla restaurant early Monday escaped, but the truck was recovered nearby.
The holdup occurred around 3:15 a.m. while the crew was cleaning the TGI Friday’s restaurant in a shopping center on Villa La Jolla near Nobel Drive, San Diego Police Officer Matt Tortorella said. The restaurant was closed at the time.
One of the cleaners told the gunman he was sick, and the suspect let the man’s wife go outside to purportedly look for his medication, according to broadcast reports. She instead called for help.
The gunman was spotted inside the CVS store on the other side of the shopping center around the same time, and the truck was recovered outside, Tortorella said. However, the suspect ultimately escaped.
Police described the suspect as black, about 5 feet 10, with an athletic build. He was wearing a dark hooded sweatshirt.
—City News Service
