Man accused of robbery in AZ kidnaps 10-year-old, flees to California, cops say
A man accused of a Circle K robbery in Arizona kidnapped a 10-year-old girl and fled to California, police said.
Martin Ochoa-Espinoza, 39, went to the convenience store at about 12:50 a.m. May 27, the Yuma Police Department said in a Facebook post.
He is accused of pressing a hard object into the store clerk’s back, then demanding money, police said.
Police said they began looking for the “suspect vehicle,” a white Ford Expedition.
Authorities found the SUV the next day at about 7:30 p.m. parked at the gas pumps at another Circle K, police said.
Ochoa-Espinoza was in the passenger seat when police approached, so he “slid into the driver’s seat” and drove off with a 10-year-old girl in the backseat, leaving the child’s mother at the store, police said.
Police said he drove from Yuma to Winterhaven, California, which is about a 4-mile drive.
The SUV “became inoperable” at railroad tracks in California where he was arrested on charges of armed robbery and kidnapping, police said.
It’s not known if he previously knew the mother and child.
The Yuma Police Department did not immediately respond to McClatchy News’ request for more information on May 30.
Yuma is in southwestern Arizona, near the California border.
This story was originally published May 30, 2025 at 11:43 AM with the headline "Man accused of robbery in AZ kidnaps 10-year-old, flees to California, cops say."
