Two men and a woman were held to answer today for a series of robberies at several Palmdale stores including CVS and Walgreens pharmacies and a Little Caesar’s Pizza, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced.
Mahealani Austin, 26, Brooke Nicole Hollins, 22, and Marcus Travis Robinson, 24, were ordered to stand trial for 13 counts each of second-degree robbery, eight counts each of kidnapping to commit robbery, four counts each of attempted robbery and two counts each of criminal threats, according to Deputy District Attorney Craig Kleffman.
Austin and Robinson face an additional two counts each of second-degree robbery, and Robinson also was held to answer on one count of possession of marijuana for sale.
The robberies and kidnappings occurred between Dec. 12, 2011 and Sept. 24, 2012, usually very early in the morning, the prosecutor said. During the robbery several victims were threatened at gunpoint and taken to isolated areas of the retail locations, according to testimony during the multi-day preliminary hearing. (Read more here.) The complaint names 17 alleged victims. Several of the stores were robbed more than once, the prosecutor added.
The three are scheduled to be arraigned on the 30-count felony information on July 17 in Department A17 of the Los Angeles County Superior Court, Antelope Valley Branch. They each remain jailed on $11 million bail.
The case remains under investigation by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, Lancaster Station.
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Brian says
You don’t get a bail that high without concrete evidence…with more than 17 victims, that could have anyone of our relatives working tryna make honest living! I’m just glad no one resisted, who knows what would have happened had they met a little resistance…
Brian says
Did you ever see their parents at their meets cheering and encouraging them to strive for excellence? Parents must realize that their greatest investments are their children, not their cars, boats, or homes. If you think back I betcha this information though shocking, isn’t surprising. Gangs, jails, and cemeteries are full of great athletes, class clowns, and ppl who just did the minimum just to get by. They made a choice, and now must live with the results! You too represent PHS along with other positive graduates. Keep doing your part!
joe says
There ain’t no good in an evil-hearted woman
And I ain’t cut out to be no Jesse James
And you don’t go writing hot cheques down in Mississippi
And there ain’t no good chain gang
J says
Just crazy to see someone I used to run track and field with now seen to be such a bad person and rob people… It is very disappointing to see
Eric says
An unfortunate circumstance of life. I played football in high school; roughly around a quarter of the team my senior year is incarcerated or dealing with consequences from incarceration. As I get older, I’m seeing a similar statistic starting to develop with guys I went to Boot Camp with.
You just never know what kind of person you are dealing with. It is a letdown, you just have to remember that you represent the group as well (T&F, not the criminals), and as long as your portraying a positive image, hold your head up chief.
Saints says
It just blows my mine how some people so young chose an easy path of destruction to their own futures… all three of this young persons for taking the easy way out are going to suffer dearly for their actions….not only do I feel sorry for their parents but at the same time for all their vitamins… guess you built your own path in life…..
iflownice@gmail.com says
They must be guilty when their bail has been set to $11 million. The authorities must have hard evidence against this trio. They’ll get a lenghty time in state prison!