Second suspect still sought in connection to Friday morning incident
By Sam Catanzaro
One man was arrested while a second suspect remains at large following an armed carjacking and kidnapping outside a Santa Monica restaurant that led to a high-speed crash followed by a foot pursuit last week.
According to the Santa Monica Police Department (SMPD), on September 10 around 12:35 a.m., officers responded to an armed robbery at La Condesa restaurant, located at 1519 Wilshire Boulevard. Police learned a victim was carjacked by two suspects–one armed with a handgun– and driven around the block.
When officers arrived on the scene, they spotted the suspects fleeing in another vehicle at a high rate of speed. The suspect vehicle subsequently crashed at the intersection of 26th Street and Wilshire Boulevard, police say.
SMPD coordinated a search with the assistance of officers from the Beverly Hills and Santa Monica College police departments, along with SMPD K9s and the Drone Team.
SMPD Officers located one suspect, Steve Bryan Brown, a 21-year-old male from Anaheim, along with a loaded Smith & Wesson 9mm handgun. Brown was taken into custody without incident and subsequently booked for robbery, carjacking and kidnapping.
One suspect still remains at large in connection to this incident, described by the SMPD as a Black man around 25-30-years-old, standing 5’9”- 6’0”, and weighing 150-185 lbs.
Anyone with additional information pertaining to this incident or the outstanding suspect is strongly encouraged to contact the Criminal Investigations Division at 310-458-8451 or the Santa Monica Department’s Watch Commander (24 hours) at 310-458-8427.
