This might be the most California-sounding robbery ever. Some guys decided to rob a marijuana dispensary but were caught after crashing their getaway car into a solar panel.
The Press Democrat reports three men were arrested after their attempted robbery of a Petaluma-area dispensary went awry. The Petaluma Police Department dispatched officers at 2:50 a.m.; they arrived just as four vehicles were escaping the Down Under Industries parking lot.
Three of the vehicles matched the description of another dispensary burglary in Santa Rosa, where $40,000 worth of cash and product was taken. The two incidents have not been officially linked.
Authorities gave pursuit, but a Mercedes Benz peeled away from the group and vanished down a different roadway.
The other cars hit speeds of over 100 mph, forcing police to fall back. As they were driving, officers came across that Benz they’d lost a little earlier. But the robbers weren’t as lucky as before: when trying to flee, they crashed through two fences before ultimately coming to a halt after smashing into a solar panel.
The driver and their passengers fled the vehicle and ran away on foot.
Police later captured 29-year-old Joshua Hawkins-Butler, 18-year-old David Hill III and 31-year old Shawtanique Blocker. They were arrested and booked into the Sonoma County Jail.