A man suspected of a series of high-stakes smash-and-grab robberies targeting Southern California jewelry stores has been cuffed, authorities announced Thursday. Joshua Lewis, a 24-year-old from Inglewood, was arrested after a string of heists that saw masked bandits make off with $100,000 worth of jewels and send local law enforcement on a months-long pursuit.
The spree of brash daytime burglaries began on July 30, 2023, with a pepper-spray assault on a security guard making the headlines, and ended with the thieves shattering display cases at a Perris Boulevard jewelry store in Perris. It wasn't until officers from the Corona Police Department pinched two suspects following another smash-and-grab that the pieces started fitting together, leading to the identification of Lewis, according to a statement from the Riverside County Sheriff's Department.
The Perris Sheriff’s Station Robbery Burglary Suppression Team (RBST) teamed with Corona's finest, unearthing evidence tying Lewis to the crimes across the region, including a similar robbery in Thousand Oaks. Despite a warrant being issued for his arrest, Lewis posted bail after initial capture, wading back into the shadows until his most recent apprehension in Riverside on January 11.
Authorities booked Lewis into the Cois Byrd Detention Center on multiple felony charges, including robbery. The arrest occurred without incident, at about 0900 hours, in the 4000 block of Main Street, in a Riverside takedown by the Perris Sheriff’s Station RBST and Special Enforcement Team, as reported in their press release.
The Riverside County Sheriff's Department continues their investigation and urges anyone with information to reach out to Deputy Ramirez. Lewis, now confined to the detention center, awaits the next steps in the judicial process as the authorities work to paint the full picture of the smash-and-grab saga.
