Police arrest man suspected of multiple Riverside County armed robberies

Police have arrested a 37-year-old man suspected of two armed robberies in Banning earlier this week. 

Officers were called to a Jack-in-the-Box restaurant in the 6300 block of W. Ramsey Street after learning of the first incident, according to a news release from the Banning Police Department. 

Upon arrival, they learned that a man had approached the counter and showed employees what appeared to be a gun. The staff backed away from the counter, at which point "the suspect stole cash from one of the registers and fled on foot," police said. 

They searched the area for the suspect, who employees descried as having "tattoos on his face," but they were unable to find him. 

He was eventually located three hours later on W. Beaumont Avenue, at which point police said they recovered a replica pistol and cash from the Jack-in-the-Box robbery. 

During the course of their investigation, officers were also able to connect the suspect to an alleged hold-up that happened on Sunday morning at the Walgreens on N. Highland Avenue. They said that the suspect matched the description provided by a store clerk. 

Codi Jay Shelton was booked on Tuesday night on suspicion of armed robbery, police said. There were no injuries reported in either robbery.