A 22-year-old man has been arrested in connection with seven armed robberies at Tucson-area fast food restaurants, authorities said.
Mateo Rodriguez was taken into custody last night, after Pima County Sheriff's deputies located him through vehicles used in the robberies, Sheriff Chris Nanos said in a news conference Thursday morning.
He credited the arrest to a joint investigation between the sheriff's department and the Tucson Police Department.
Rodriguez was booked into the Pima County jail on seven counts of armed robbery, two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, two counts of burglary and possession of narcotics and drug paraphernalia.
Five of the robberies took place within Tucson Police Department's jurisdiction, and the other two were sheriff's department cases, Nanos said.
In each of the robberies, the suspect ordered food at the drive-through and paid for his order. When the employees opened the cash register, the suspect brandished a black handgun, before taking money out of the register, police said.
Using surveillance obtained during the robberies, detectives went to local car dealerships until they were able to identify a grey SUV used in at least one of the robberies as a 2016 Nissan Rogue, Nanos said.
Detectives followed up with owners of the vehicle in question, then worked with rental car agencies to get a list of people who had rented a grey 2016 Rogue, Nanos said.
While visiting one of the houses, detectives found the Rogue, and a white Dodge Ram truck, similar to one that had been used in most of the robberies.
The homeowner identified articles of clothing in the surveillance videos as his son's, and when interviewed by detectives, Rodriguez admitted to the crimes, saying that he had a drug problem, Nanos said.
