Suspects in California Coast Credit Union Robbery are Arraigned

Federal bank robbery charges were filed Tuesday against two active-duty Marines who allegedly robbed the California Coast Credit Union on La Mesa Boulevard at gunpoint and led officers on a chase that resulted in the evacuation of a Rolando
neighborhood, City News Service reported.

Davon Jacques Darden, 23, and Dominique Dontae Lasker, 26, are accused of robbing the bank about 2 p.m. Saturday.

U.S. Magistrate Judge William Gallo ordered the defendants to be held without bail, pending a detention hearing on Friday.  

Assistant U.S. Attorney Joanna Curtis described them as a danger to the community and flight risks.

According to FBI Special Agent Darrell Foxworth, Darden and Lasker wore masks and one of them was armed with a handgun. They jumped over the counter and held up several tellers at gunpoint, he alleged.

A short time later, a San Diego police sergeant saw the robbers' getaway car—a black Chevrolet Monte Carlo—in the 4600 block of Mataro Drive.

The sergeant attempted to stop Darden as he was walking away from the vehicle,
but he fled behind Clay Elementary School, Foxworth said.

Another SDPD officer then spotted Darden at Catherine and Stanley avenues, and a pursuit ensued, according to the special agent. The suspect allegedly reached for his waistband during the pursuit, prompting the officer to fire several rounds, according to Foxworth.

The suspect—unhurt in the gunfire—then jumped over a fence for the second time and disappeared into the neighborhood.

Darden was later found by SWAT officers and a police dog hiding in a garage in the 6300 block of Stanley Avenue, Foxworth said.

During the search for the other suspect, police picked locks at homes where the residents were away, according to San Diego City Councilwoman Marti Emerald. The city will pay for any damage the officers did to the homes, she said.

Darden was apprehended about 5:45 p.m. Saturday. Lasker was later arrested after he voluntarily agreed to meet with police detectives and FBI agents, according to Foxworth.