93-Year-Old Thrown to Ground, Purse Stolen

Newport Beach detectives have arrested a man wanted for allegedly knocking a 93-year-old woman to the ground on a public street and stealing her purse, a police official said Tuesday.

Their investigation led Newport Beach Police detectives to Cosme Aleandro Ibarra-Guel, 31, of Arleta. Police arrested Ibarra-Guel last Wednesday and charged him with robbery, said police spokeswoman Kathy Lowe.

Detectives say that on June 30 at about 2:30 p.m., Ibarra-Guel knocked the woman onto the street near the corner of San Joaquin Hills and San Miguel roads, stole her purse and fled in a black truck.

The unidentified woman suffered significant injuries and was treated at a local hospital. Lowe said inside the woman's purse was a wallet with an unknown amount of money, a checkbook and eyeglasses. 

“This was a savage crime by an individual who preyed upon a 93-year-old woman from our community," Newport Beach Police Chief Jay Johnson said. "With very little to go on, our detectives were tenacious and relentless in solving this crime and ensuring they brought the suspect to justice.”

Ibarra-Guel was being held without bail at the Theo Lacy jail in Orange. He is scheduled to appear Monday at the Harbor Justice Center in Newport Beach.

Police ask anyone with information about the crime to contact the Newport Beach Police Department at 800- 550-NBPD. Information can be given anonymously.