Burbank police received a call around 3:00 pm on Wednesday, January 25, of a robbery that had just occurred at Starz Liquor at Orchard and Olive.
According to a release by Sergeant Brent Fekety of the Burbank Police Department, the clerk told police that “a man entered the establishment, selected merchandise, and left without paying. When the clerk confronted the suspect outside, he assaulted her and fled.”
After getting a description of the man, officers found him walking down the street, and when he spotted the officers, he began to run. Police lost sight of him but quickly established a perimeter on Clark from Parish to Reese and Magnolia from Parish to Reese. They called in a helicopter and two K-9 units to assist in the search.
During the standoff, Burroughs High School went into lockdown. They later released students from the school on the Keystone side.
Police began the search from house to house and finally found the man, identified as 27-year-old Daronte Powell, a transient, hiding in a detached garage in the 400 block of Orchard. Powell refused to comply with the officer’s demands, so the K-9 assisted in the apprehension. A paramedic unit that was staging nearby came in and treated the suspect for a dog bite.
According to Fekety, there was still more for Powell when an alert officer recognized the suspect from a previous burglary on January 23 in Downtown Burbank. “Mr. Powell entered Club Pilates, located at 209 East Orange Grove Avenue, at about 2:00 a.m., where he stole electronics and cash. The establishment reported it to the Burbank Police Department and provided surveillance video of the incident. Mr. Powell was questioned about the burglary and admitted to the theft.”
Powell is being held in custody in lieu of a $50,000 bond and is due to appear in court on January 27 on felony robbery and burglary.
Formal charges are pending review by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
