Passersby credited with helping nab Redding robbery suspect

Redding police say a robbery suspect was arrested over the weekend thanks to the efforts of some concerned civilians.

Two men with “suspicious clothing and demeanor” were seen by some people in the area running from a Dollar General store on Meadow View Drive Sunday afternoon, according to a Redding Police Department press release. The witnesses thought something was “not right” and decided to follow the men.

Those two men just moments earlier had walked into the Dollar General wearing masks and demanded money, police said. They had fled the store at around 1:30 p.m. after an employee refused to give them any cash.

The people who had followed the men were able to direct Shasta County Deputies to one suspect’s location, police said

Anthony Castaneda, 22, of Redding was arrested for attempted robbery about a quarter mile away on Airport Road and was booked into the Shasta County Jail, police said.

Castaneda was found with items that linked him to the robbery and was also identified by witnesses and Dollar General employees, police said.

Despite the help of a K-9 unit and a CHP helicopter, authorities were unable to locate Castaneda’s partner, described as a white male with medium build, police said. The clothes the man was seen wearing on surveillance video were found near the crime scene during the search.

Police say that the second suspect is not considered a danger to the public and are asking anyone with information regarding the robbery to call (530) 225-4200.