A 19-year-old used a machete to control employees and customers during a robbery at an auto parts store in Phoenix.
The incident happened on August 3rd at a store near 75th Avenue and Lower Buckeye Road.
Phoenix police report they arrested 19-year-old Ever Alexis Salaiz on September 11th, accusing him of using a machete during a robbery.
Victims reported that two men entered the store wearing masks. One suspect grabbed the store manager and forced him to open the safe and cash registers. The other suspect, later identified as Salaiz, locked the front door and held the other employees and customers at bay with a machete.
On September 6th, police say they received an anonymous tip saying Salaiz was involved in another incident in the same parking lot as the auto parts store robbery, on the same day.
Salaiz was located and arrested a few days later and reportedly admitted his involvement in the robbery, saying he was given $200 for his part in the crime. He has been charged with multiple counts of armed robbery and kidnapping. There is no word yet on the status of his accomplice.
