iPhone Sale Arranged Online Ends With Armed Robbery

What was supposed to be a meeting between a man selling iPhones and a potential client in an industrial area Friday night turned into an armed robbery, according to Temecula police.

Police said the man selling iPhones arranged sales through a popular web site, and met the suspect around 10 p.m. in the 42000 block of Winchester Road, an industrial area west of Interstate 15 with several closed businesses.

When the man arrived at the location with the iPhones, the suspect walked up to his vehicle, grabbed one of the phones and pulled out a handgun, according to Sgt. Geoff Green. The suspect ordered the man to turn over another iPhone and his wallet, but the victim drove off and called police.

Officers arrived within minutes and searched the area for the suspect—including setting up a perimeter and conducting several vehicle stops—but he was able to get away. The suspect was described as a thin Hispanic male, approximately 20 years old, around 6 feet tall, 165 pounds, wearing a white T-shirt and blue jeans.

Police are asking anyone with information about the suspect to call the Riverside Sheriff’s Department’s Temecula station at (951) 696-3000, or dispatch at (951) 776-1099.