LOS ANGELES — Detectives urged people Wednesday to contact them with any information about other crimes possibly committed by a man arrested in the September robbery of a Chinatown-area business in which surveillance video showed the suspect repeatedly assaulting a female store employee who tried to intervene.
Courtland Thornton, 31, was arrested Friday in Hawthorne, where he attempted to hide in a backyard to elude officers, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. According to jail records, Thornton is being held in lieu of $1 million bail.
Thornton is suspected in a robbery that occurred just before noon Sept. 14 on the 800 block of North Broadway near North Spring Street, authorities said.
Surveillance footage captured the suspect going into the business, shoving the female employee to the ground, then removing property from behind the counter. When the employee tried to stop the man, he assaulted her again and shoved her to the floor before fleeing. Police said the woman had to be hospitalized for her injuries.
Courtland Thornton, 31, was captured in Hawthorne on Friday, nearly a month after the Sept. 14 violent Chinatown robbery in the 800 block of North Broadway, the Los Angeles Police Department said in a news release. pic.twitter.com/lyElL3Vfpn
— Asian Dawn (@AsianDawn4) October 15, 2023
Justice finally served. Thornton Courtland, the man responsible for beating a clerk who was trying to stop him from stealing merchandise at a Chinatown store, has been arrested in connection to the robbery. Thankfully, the clerk has since recovered from her injuries.
Full story… pic.twitter.com/gEuUCi2LfM
— Los Angeles Police Protective League (@LAPPL) October 16, 2023
Detectives from the LAPD’s Central Area Robbery Division are investigating whether the suspect might have been involved in other robberies.
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The plea for the public’s help was made at a news conference Wednesday morning at the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association of Los Angeles.
Anyone with additional information was asked to call Det. Huy Nguyen of Central Area Robbery at 213-996-1875. During non-business hours or on weekends, calls should be directed to 877-527-3247. Anyone who wishes to remain anonymous can call the LA Regional Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477, or tips can be sent to www.lacrimestoppers.org.