Video of Fresno girls beaten and robbed posted on Facebook
WARNING: This footage contains material that some viewers may find disturbing due to explicit language and/or the graphic nature of the material.
FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Two Fresno girls were beaten and robbed as they walked home from school. And the whole incident was recorded on a cell phone by one of the suspects.
The Fresno County Sheriff's Office released the following statement to Action News:
Facebook Video Posting Helps Detectives Catch Three Robbery Suspects
Fresno County Sheriff's detectives have arrested two adults and one juvenile for a robbery committed against a pair of teenage sisters. 24-year-old Steven Vang and 18-year-old Leanna Risueno have been booked into the Fresno County Jail. A 14-year-old girl has been booked into the Fresno County Juvenile Justice Center.
On January 22nd, 2015, the three suspects targeted two teenage girls who were walking home from school in the area of N. Barton and E. Princeton Ave. in Fresno. Risueno (bright red hair) moved in toward the girls with her fists up, ready to fight. One of the victims swung her backpack in self-defense, but missed. Risueno punched back, but did not connect with the victim. The 14-year-old suspect then joined in and tried to rip the shoes off the other victim's feet, however, she kicked back and was able to keep her shoes on. Risueno then shifted her attention toward this victim and grabbed her cell phone out of her hand. The phone dropped and the victim was able to get it back. During the struggle, Risueno took a purse away from one of the victim's and dropped it on the ground. Steven Vang, the third suspect who was recording the confrontation using his cell phone's camera, walked up and took the purse. The three suspects then ran back to their car and drove away.
One of the victims was very observant in that she noticed Vang recording the robbery. Detectives knew this could provide valuable evidence toward completing their investigation.
A big break came when friends of the victims discovered video of a robbery posted on Facebook. Those folks reported it to the Sheriff's Office and detectives determined it was in fact the robbery they were looking into. Detectives identified the suspects and arrested all three of them.
The two victims only received minor scrapes. The suspects got away with some clothing and jewelry. The victims did not know the suspects.
