Authorities arrested a Moreno Valley man and a teenage girl after officials alleged the pair used an online dating site to lure at least two men to remote areas where the couple carjacked the victims of their vehicles. Both reported carjackings happened on Wednesday, June 21, and while investigating the two carjackings, deputies from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Moreno Valley Police Station were able to identify, locate and arrest Christian Duran, 21, of Moreno Valley which Riverside Sheriff’s Sergeant Samuel Flores explained in a written press release after the incidents and arrests. Officials also identified and arrested a juvenile female who allegedly worked with Duran to lure the men and carry out the crimes. The girl has not been identified due to her age.
Deputies responded to the first incident about 6:20 a.m., when the victim called 911 to report being carjacked, and investigating deputies learned the carjacking happened near the 13600 block of Phyllis Avenue in Moreno Valley.
The victim, who has not been identified, told deputies “he had arranged a date on a popular dating app from his cell phone,” Sergeant Flores explained. “When he arrived at the meeting location, he was confronted by both a male and a female who carjacked him at gunpoint." According to officials, the victim was able to provide police officers with “very detailed information on the male’s description to include various tattoos,” said Flores, and based on the victim’s description and the suspect’s distinctive tattoos, deputies recognized Duran as the possible suspect. Despite searching for the suspect and the stolen vehicle, officials were not able to locate either at the time.
Just twelve hours later, at about 6:45 p.m., deputies responded to another report of a carjacking that happened near the 21000 block of Bay Avenue in Moreno Valley, and investigating deputies quickly determined Duran and the unidentified teenager were once again involved and had possibly used the same dating app to lure the victim to the remote location where the carjacking happened. “Officers searched the area for Duran and the vehicle,” Flores explained. “Once again, he eluded capture.”
During their investigations, officials gathered information and developed leads about Duran’s whereabouts. On Thursday, June 22, members of the Moreno Valley Special Enforcement Team learned that Duran was at a residence near the 14000 block of Wildwood Street in Moreno Valley. At about 1 p.m., SET members responded to the Wildwood St. residence where they apprehended Duran without incident. The teenage female was not located at the time. "Through various tracking and investigative techniques, officers were able to locate and arrest the female,” said Flores.
After locating and questioning both alleged suspects, officials arrested the couple. Duran was booked into the Robert Presley Detention Center and the teenage girl was booked into Juvenile Hall in Riverside.
An online jail records search revealed Duran was booked into jail on suspicion of committing nine felonies and one misdemeanor, including two counts each of carjacking, assault with a deadly weapon and conspiracy to commit a felony. He was also booked on suspicion of committing a felony while out of jail on bail or early release and three counts of violation of probation.
He is being held on $1 million bail and is scheduled to be arraigned at the Riverside Hall Of Justice June 27.