Police: Former Jack in the Box Employee Arrested on Suspicion of Robbery

Pleasanton Police released the following information regarding a robbery at the Pleasanton Jack in the Box:

On Thursday, October 30 at 10:21 p.m., officers were dispatched to the Jack in the Box restaurant located at 4295 Valley Avenue on a report of a male subject who ran into the restaurant wearing a mask. The suspect quickly jumped the front counter, scaring employees. The suspect ran towards the back of the restaurant, pushed one employee to the ground and ran to the back office area where the safe was located. The suspect immediately accessed the unlocked door that was left open during business hours and grabbed a small stack of bills from a cash tray. The suspect then fled the store shoving his way past employees, back over the front counter and ran west bound through the parking lot behind Monument Car Parts where he jumped the fence into the Valley Plaza Apartments complex.

Responding officers quickly set up a perimeter around the area. Officer Boccasile located a vehicle occupied by three subjects attempting to leave the apartment complex parking lot. Upon contacting the subjects and determining none of them lived there, he was ultimately able to pat down the subjects and located the cash from the robbery in the possession of Courtney Dariko Townsel, 19, of Pleasanton. Through interviews of the other two parties with Townsel, Ofc Boccasile was able to determine that Townsel committed the robbery and the two parties with him had no involvement.

Townsel admitted to committing the robbery under Miranda and also showed officers where he hid the clothing and gloves he was wearing. Townsel used to work at the Jack in the Box restaurant and was familiar with the lay out of the restaurant and safe operation.

After jumping the fence into the apartment complex, Townsel hid the pants, sweat jacket and gloves he was wearing in the yard of one of the apartment units. He had planned the robbery in advance and had a second set of clothes on underneath the clothes he wore during the robbery. No employees were injured during the robbery and no weapon was used or displayed.

All of the cash stolen during the robbery was recovered. Townsel was booked at Santa Rita Jail on one count of 211 P.C. – Robbery.