2 Charged In Massage Parlor Robbery Spree In Redondo Beach

REDONDO BEACH, CA — Two Los Angeles County men were charged this week in connection with more than a dozen armed robberies in Los Angeles and Orange Counties using stolen guns, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

According to a justice department affidavit, the two suspects drove to multiple massage parlors before robbing one in Torrance on Feb. 16.

The men, identified as twenty-eight-year-old Andy Cuellar, of Hawthorne and twenty-seven-year-old Arturo Morales, of Downey, then drove to a gas station less than two miles away to go through the stolen items, according to prosecutors. Authorities allege Cuellar was driving
the getaway vehicle, a black Jeep Grand Cherokee.

"After the robbery [the men were] standing at the back of the Jeep and going through items taken in the robbery, throwing some of them in the trash," the DOJ said in a statement. "Once law enforcement arrived on scene, the defendants allegedly fled on foot and discarded items they
had stolen."

Police who searched the vehicle said they found a .38-caliber firearm that was reported stolen in 2018.

The pair were arrested following a foot chase at the scene, according to authorities. Morales was carrying about $4,000 in cash and Cuellar carried about $400, prosecutors contend. Both suspects were found to be wearing the same clothing identified in several previous robberies of
massage parlors, according to the affidavit.

Investigators believe the two men are responsible for at least 12 additional armed robberies between Jan. 12 and 29 in Santa Ana, Reseda, Venice, Orange, Bellflower and Redondo Beach.

The defendants were charged on Feb. 20 with interference with commerce by robbery and using and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence, the DOJ said.

If convicted, Cuellar and Morales will face statutory maximum sentences of 20 years in federal prison for the robbery charge and life in prison for the firearm charge. Their arraignment is expected in the coming weeks, officials said.