Mountain View Police Department detectives Tuesday (Aug. 15) arrested two East Bay men who attempted to steal a laptop by causing its owner to fall from a moving vehicle.
San Pablo resident Luis Bravo, 20, and El Cerrito resident Bomani Bassette, 19, were booked into the Santa Clara County Jail on charges of robbery, assault with a deadly weapon and kidnapping during a robbery. Emergency responders treated the victim at the scene for minor injuries he sustained in the incident.
Law enforcement officials responding to reports of a robbery in the 1600 block of Amphitheatre Parkway near Google’s campus discovered a Nissan sedan smashed into a utility pole, according to a police department press release.
The victim told police he arranged to meet with Bravo and Bassette to sell his laptop, and they coaxed him into the car so they could inspect it, according to the release. While one of the suspects examined the computer, the other pretended to offer the victim cash through a car window.
“As the victim reached to take the money, the driver of the car quickly accelerated through a parking lot in an attempt to get the victim to fall out of the car – and to subsequently not get the money he was owed in the transaction,” according to the release
The suspects eventually managed to dislodge the victim, and he tumbled from the sedan and began yelling, attracting help from a passerby and a Google security guard, according to the release. Meanwhile, the sedan struck the pole and the suspects attempted to run, but officers quickly apprehended them.
Bassette and Bravo are being held at the Santa Clara County Jail without bail. Their first court appearance is scheduled for Thursday.
