Suspect Arrested in Mugging of 90-Year-Old Rossmoor Woman

A 23-year-old parolee from Long Beach was arrested Thursday on suspicion of .

A police sketch based on the woman's description led detectives to the suspect, who was captured about 3 a.m., said Orange County Sheriff's Department spokesman Jim Amormino.

The victim "gave a very good description,'' Amormino told City News Service. "Her details were very explicit ... [and] I'm told his photo looks exactly like the drawing.''

After the sketch was released, a deputy recognized the suspect from a case in Sunset Beach, Amormino said, adding that the man has a history of narcotics charges. The suspect's name was withheld because of the ongoing investigation, he said.

Authorities are still searching for the man's alleged accomplice.

Investigators suspect the robbers may have accosted two other elderly victims in Cypress and Tustin. In the Tustin case, an 88-year-old woman was robbed after getting money from her bank on Nov. 22, he said.

The Rossmoor attack began around 11 a.m. Wednesday, when the woman stepped outside her Weatherby Road home to retrieve a newspaper.

"She uses a cane and they came up behind her, put a gun at her throat, took her back inside the house and said, 'Sit down and don't look at me,' " according to her son, who asked to be identified only as Jim.

The robbers tied the woman to a chair, covered her face with a towel and ransacked every room in the house, Amormino said.

The robbers also "physically ripped her jewelry off her," tearing her blouse and popping off buttons in the process, he said. They made their getaway in a small, compact white pickup.

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