A Phoenix man’s Tinder meetup at a hotel resulted in him having his personal identification stolen and being robbed of $3,000 by an armed couple.
According to police, the victim matched with a woman named “Sonya” on the dating app and agreed to meet with her at the Embassy Suites Hotel near Camelback Road and 26th street on September 17.
When the man arrived at the hotel room to meet his date, he was instead greeted by an armed couple.
The male suspect allegedly drew a gray handgun on the victim and demanded that he hand over his cellphone, identification, social media accounts, PIN codes, and bank account information, Fox 10 reported citing a police report.
The couple then forced the victim at gunpoint to drive to a Chase Bank and withdraw money from the ATM machine. The victim told police that the suspects took $900 from him that night and noted that $3,000 had been removed from his account since September 17.
Five days later, police identified Crystal Hulsey, 33, and Jose Sandoval Jaquez, 32, as the suspects after discovering the couple used their real names when paying for the hotel and withdrawing from the victim’s bank account, CBS 5 reported.
The victim’s vehicle was located in Las Vegas, where police attempted to pull the couple over. However, the couple was able to escape by foot and catch a ride back to Phoenix. Authorities later discovered a gray handgun in the vehicle on September 25.
Police later discovered Husley’s phone number attached to an online escort advertisement and devised an operation to meet up with the woman.
Just as officers identified the couple in a Nissan Rouge SUV near Interstate 17 and Thomas Road, Fox 10 reported.
A high-speed car chase then ensued, per CBS 5:
Court documents say that when Hulsey and Jaquez arrived, they suspected they were being watched and sped away, driving on the wrong side of Jefferson Street near 27th Avenue. Their car reportedly ran out of gas, so they hit another driver and carjacked their vehicle, police said.
Officers attempted to pull over Hulsey and Jaquez as they drove through the East Valley but were unsuccessful. Hulsey and Jaquez then drove up the Beeline Highway to Happy Jack, where they drove on the wrong side of the road and crashed into another vehicle. Police say that as Hulsey and Jaquez attempted to flee and steal another car, the Department of Public Safety helicopter landed on the road and troopers took them into custody.
Husley and Jaquez were both charged with assault, armed robbery, robbery, and two counts of vehicle theft. Husley was additionally charged with drug offenses.
After being arrested, Jaquez reportedly told police that “he knew this would come back to get him.”
You can follow Ethan Letkeman on Twitter at @EthanLetkeman.
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