Man Suspected As 'Juice Bar Burglar' Arrested, Believed To Be Behind Several Valley Crimes

MISSION HILLS (CBSLA.com) — A distinctive forearm tattoo led to a quick arrest of the so-called Juice Bar Burglar this weekend, Los Angeles police said Monday.

Michael Silvas Martinez, 46, was arrested Saturday inside an underground gambling den in the city of San Fernando, Los Angeles police said.

"His tattoo was his undoing," LAPD Lt. Paul Vernon said in a statement. "We just needed to get the word and the picture out, and he was done as the Juice Bar Burglar."

On Thursday, LAPD officials released surveillance video and images of the burglar, who police say stole thousands of dollars in cash from March 28 to April 6 at three Raspado Xpress locations. The owners of the juice bar chain shared the media reports of the stores' burglaries on their social media pages, and a tipster saw the tattoo near a Vallarta market Saturday afternoon.

Martinez, a two-time felon, was arrested wearing the same camouflage shorts that he wore in one of the burglaries.

Police say they have connected Martinez to several more crimes in the San Fernando Valley.

"We have pored over other videos of recent crimes, and we think we have connected him to at least three more burglaries," Lt. Vernon said. "Most people outside law enforcement don't realize just how many crimes a single person can commit in a short spree. Given the one crime in Panorama City and the two in Pacoima in just a week, and the fact he lives in Granada Hills and was caught in San Fernando, I would expect that he's responsible for a wide swath of crime across the north San Fernando Valley."