NEWPORT BEACH, Calif.—A trio of suspects robbed a man sitting inside a white Rolls-Royce SUV and tried to carjack another in a yellow Ferrari—leading to shots being fired—in the parking lot of an upscale Newport Beach shopping center, authorities said Aug. 27.
The robberies were reported around 11:30 p.m. Aug. 26 at a parking lot at Fashion Island near the Bloomingdale’s store, in the southern California city. Witnesses told Newport Beach police that three men wearing ski masks approached a man in a Rolls-Royce and stole his watch and wallet.
The suspects then approached a man in a yellow Ferrari and attempted to carjack the vehicle, but the driver sped away, prompting one of the suspects to open fire at the luxury car, shattering a window.
The Ferrari driver eventually stopped at a nearby gas station. One of the victims suffered a wound to his ear, “possibly from shattered glass from a gunshot at the vehicle” that was treated by paramedics, police reported.
The suspects fled the scene and were believed to have been in a blue Kia sedan, officials said.
Anyone with information for detectives was asked to call 949-644-3762 or to email [email protected].
In July, a tourist from New Zealand—68-year-old Patricia McKay—was killed in an attempted robbery in the parking lot of the Fashion Island mall. In that case, two suspects approached the victim and her husband as they were leaving the mall and tried to rob them, eventually dragging McKay into the parking lot, where she was run over by a getaway vehicle driven by a third suspect.
The three suspects were caught that day and later charged with murder.
