Two arrested after robbery at Walgreens, employee injured
Two suspects arrested after attempting to flee
– On Wednesday at about 6:24 p.m., the Atascadero Police Department received a report of a strong-armed robbery that had just occurred at the Walgreens Pharmacy, located in the 8000 block of El Camino Real. It was reported that one of the suspects assaulted a Walgreens employee and the suspects left in a vehicle.
Atascadero Police officers arrived on the scene and made contact with the injured employee, who told them the suspect was observed loading merchandise into a large trash bag inside the store. The employee told a coworker to call the police and watched as the suspect started to walk to the exit door.
The employee reportedly followed the suspect and told him to stop, at which point the suspect hit the employee in the face. A second suspect was also seen exiting the store carrying unpaid merchandise in her arms.
Both suspects got into a vehicle and left the scene.
The Walgreens employee sustained visible injuries as a result of the incident and later sought treatment at Twin Cities Community Hospital.
At about 8:40 p.m., a call was received from the California Highway Patrol informing APD that the suspects in this incident had been taken into custody within the City of Gonzales in Monterey County. The CHP had located the vehicle in Monterey County and attempted a traffic stop. The suspects failed to yield and a pursuit was initiated. The suspects then reportedly drove into a drainage ditch and fled on foot from the vehicle. They attempted to hide in a nearby culvert but were located and taken into custody.
APD officers responded to Gonzales, where they took custody of the suspects and recovered the stolen property. Additional property was located inside the vehicle, which remains under investigation by this agency.
Nashawn Goldie Smith, 29 years from Stockton, was transported back to San Luis Obispo County and booked into Jail for the following charges:
- 211 PC, Robbery
- 242 PC, Battery
- 182(a) PC, Conspiracy
Justice Anika Busby, 25 years from Daly City, was booked into jail for the following charges:
- 182(a) PC, Conspiracy
- 459.5(a) PC, Shoplifting
