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Man Dressed As Batman Accused Of Committing Crime Spree In O.C.

WESTMINSTER (CBSLA.com) — A man who dressed as Batman is behind bars after committing a crime spree in Orange County on Monday, according to police.

The suspect, believed to be in his 20s, robbed a victim of jewelry about  8:30 a.m. at Bolsa Avenue and Ward Street in Garden Grove, said Officer Rachel Archambault of the Westminster Police Department.

About 20 minutes later and two miles away near Bolsa Avenue and Purdy Street in Westminster, the masked man targeted a second victim at gunpoint, Archambault said.

Phouc Lee said the bandit demanded money when he fought him off.

"I was trying to chase the suspect down. The officer is right there. I tried to wave him down," Lee said. He chased the masked man into an apartment complex, which was surrounded by officers from Westminster, Fountain Valley and Garden Grove.

About two and a half hours later, with help from Orange County sheriff's deputies in a helicopter and their canines, officers caught the man lying in the pool area alone in his underwear.

Police said the suspect was trying to blend in as one of the tenants at the apartment complex. "He had taken off all the clothes that the police officers had seen him in. He was wearing boxer shorts and just laying by the pool when we located him," Archambault said.

Authorities said the suspected robber, who used an airsoft gun, also carjacked someone earlier.

His accomplice remains on the loose.

Jessie Hayden Elementary School was locked down while police searched for the suspect.

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