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By Bay City News
A man suspected of being a serial armed robber was arrested near San Quentin State Prison on Monday, the San Rafael Police Department said.
Corey Brian Gill, 33, of San Rafael, was apprehended with the help of multiple law enforcement agencies.
On June 13, San Rafael Police began investigating a series of robberies, beginning with one at a gas station at about 3 a.m. that day. The suspect allegedly went to the Fuel 24:7 gas station at the corner of Las Gallinas Avenue and Del Presidio Boulevard in Terra Linda and robbed the clerk while brandishing a handgun. The suspect left with an undisclosed amount of cash and merchandise, police said.
The suspect was described as white man with a medium build who was wearing a gray sweatshirt, black vest, light-colored pants and a black hat, with a surgical mask over his face. He was seen fleeing in a dark-colored SUV.
Then on Sunday at 1:20 a.m., San Rafael Police responded to another robbery at the Chevron station on Del Presidio in Terra Linda. A similarly described suspect allegedly confronted the clerk with a handgun and demanded cash and gas. During the encounter, the suspect took an undisclosed amount of cash and then forced the clerk to walk to a gas pump, where he filled the suspect’s vehicle. The suspect then fled, police said.
Later that day, Novato Police contacted SRPD to report that a suspect matching the description of the San Rafael robberies had robbed a restaurant.
At 7 a.m., the suspect allegedly entered the Panera Bread restaurant in Novato brandishing a handgun, ordered the employees into a back office and demanded money. He fled with an undisclosed amount of cash. Novato Police said they obtained surveillance footage of the same suspect’s vehicle leaving the area.
On Monday just before 6 a.m., a San Rafael Sergeant saw a vehicle that appeared to match the suspect’s SUV on Fourth Street and Grand Avenue. When the vehicle allegedly committed a minor traffic offense, the officer attempted to stop it. As the officer turned on his emergency lights, the vehicle sped away and police began a pursuit. The chase went down Francisco Boulevard East and ended in the area of Lecante Drive and Main Street near San Quentin State Prison. The suspect abandoned the vehicle and fled into the residential neighborhood.
A perimeter was created by police to try to contain the suspect. Since the suspect was known to be armed with a handgun, San Rafael Police and the Marin County Sheriff’s Office told nearby residents to shelter in place.
In addition to the Sheriff’s Office, SRPD asked for assistance from the Novato Police, the Central Marin Police Authority, the California Highway Patrol and authorities at San Quentin State Prison. The Sheriff’s Office employed drones to try and locate the suspect as well. Crisis teams readied a response with negotiators and tactical teams.
As teams prepared to begin their search, a vehicle with the suspect trying to hide in the backseat approached a police perimeter checkpoint near Main Street and Interstate Highway 580, police said.
Officers said that the woman driving the car was acting “suspiciously” as she stopped for them. When officers peered into the back seat, they allege they saw the suspect trying to hide under a blanket.
Gill was then taken into custody without incident. Police said that he had an outstanding warrant out of San Francisco connected to an armed robbery from May. San Francisco Police sent two detectives to Marin, SRPD said.
Officials at San Quentin State Prison searched the nearby neighborhood and allegedly found Gill’s discarded clothes a block from where he fled from his vehicle. Marin Search and Rescue later located the discarded handgun, which was determined to be a replica BB gun. The replica allegedly matched the appearance of the gun used in the armed robberies.
Gill was booked into the Marin County Jail on suspicion of armed robbery, kidnapping, felony evading, felony possession of a stolen vehicle and misdemeanor narcotics possession. He will also face extradition to San Francisco for his armed robbery warrant.
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