Two Men Arrested for Stealing Pack of Cigarettes at Gunpoint

Two Redlands men were arrested early Tuesday morning, June 2, hours after a pack of cigarettes was stolen at gunpoint from a Redlands Boulevard convenience store. Police responded to the report of an armed robbery at Circle K, 765 W. Redlands Blvd., shortly after 11 p.m. Monday, June 1. Two suspects entered the store and asked for a pack of cigarettes before one of them displayed a handgun. The suspects took the cigarettes, exited the store and fled east on Redlands Boulevard in a late 1990s model green Honda CRV driven by another individual. Shortly before 4 a.m. an officer patrolling in the area of Texas and State streets spotted a car matching the suspect vehicle and pulled the vehicle over near Michigan and Center streets. The car was occupied by five people, including two who were later identified as the suspects in the armed robbery. Police arrested 29-year-old Jason Castaneda and 19-year-old Fernando Samano, both of Redlands. Castaneda was charged with robbery. Samano was arrested for outstanding warrants. The other three occupants of the vehicle were detained and later released. Officers recovered a handgun and the stolen pack of cigarettes in the vehicle. Anyone with information regarding crime or suspicious activity is asked to contact Redlands Police Dispatch at (909) 798-7681. Anonymous tips can be provided by texting 274637 using the keyword “REDTIP.” Certain non-emergency crimes may also be reported online using the Redlands Police Department’s CopLogic reporting system at cityofredlands.org/police/report.