Robbery suspects arrested from Cupertino Target, Starbucks-Stanley cup debacle
Suspect photos courtesy Santa Clara County Sheriffs Department.
CUPERTINO, Calif. - The Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office arrested two robbery suspects this week in connection to a January incident at a Cupertino Target that involved Stanley cups.
On January 3, Starbucks coffee and Stanley, the company behind the popular insulated steel tumbler, combined forces to offer Target customers a limited-edition ‘Winter Pink Quencher Tumbler'. The item had recently become wildly popular on social media. Seemingly everyone either had one or wanted one.
Officials said the promotion was held early in the morning at the Target located at 20745 Stevens Creek Boulevard. By 7:15 a.m., deputies were responding to the location for a report of a robbery of one of the cups.
Witnesses said two suspects, a male and female, both in their twenties, cut in line where customers had already lined up in an orderly fashion.
Target, apparently made aware of the situation, refused to sell the limited-edition, thirst-quenching cup to the suspects.
That's when officials said the male suspect jumped the counter of the Starbucks inside the Target location, knocking a barista out of the way. The suspect allegedly grabbed a box full of limited-edition Stanley cups and made an attempt to leave the store with the hot commodity.
A customer blocked the suspect from exiting the store and the male suspect was tackled to the ground. The female suspect, who is the male suspect's girlfriend, according to the sheriff's office, tried to grab a bag with the limited-edition Stanley cup inside, from another customer's hands.
The couple managed to leave the store prior to deputies arriving on the scene.
Investigators with the sheriff's office identified Kevin Torres-Cruz, 26, and Hazel Dominguez-Vera, 24, as the suspects connected to this robbery.
On Tuesday, they were both arrested and charged with robbery. The couple was booked into Santa Clara County Main Jail.
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