Police arrested a 21-year-old ASU student Sunday on the Tempe campus in connection with an aggravated assault and armed robbery at a Mesa clothing store last week.
Criminal justice student Karla Jauregui is suspected of striking a store clerk with a tire iron several times at Name Brand Exchange, at 1116 S. Dobson Road, before taking money out of the cash register, said Mesa Police spokesman Detective Mike Melendez.
She was captured on film by four surveillance cameras inside the Mesa store. Jauregui was later identified by former co-workers from Casino Arizona in Scottsdale, Melendez said.
On the night of Sept. 24, Jauregui entered the clothing store wearing a white baseball cap, glasses, a navy blue polo shirt and blue jeans. She selected several shirts and went to the register, said.
“She presented the shirts [at the register] like she was going to pay for them,” Melendez said. “She then pulled out a tire iron and struck the clerk once on the back of the neck.”
Jauregui immediately reached into the open cash register and took money, Melendez said. The clerk went back over to the register to try and stop her and Jauregui struck her several more times. Then Jauregui left the store and drove away with about $200, he said.
The store clerk did not suffer any serious injuries, Melendez said.
Police arrested Jauregui on the Tempe campus near East Orange Street and East Terrace Road on Sunday at 2:32 p.m. on suspicion of aggravated assault and armed robbery, he said.
“She stated she did it because of financial hardship,” Melendez said.
Jauregui did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
Reach the reporter at taylor.rose@asu.edu.
