Police said the victim, a 68-year-old man, had visited from New Zealand.
A New Zealand tourist was killed during a robbery at a California mall when the suspects ran over him with their vehicle as they fled the scene, police said.
The incident happened Tuesday afternoon at Fashion Island, an outdoor shopping mall in Newport Beach, police said.
The Newport Beach Police Department reported that the woman and her husband were walking in the area when two suspects, one armed with a handgun, approached and robbed them.
“There was a struggle and at this point we believe the suspects dragged her down the street,” Newport Beach police spokesman Sgt. Steve Oberon said during a press conference on Tuesday.
Both suspects tried to get into a white Toyota Camry sedan driven by a third suspect to flee the scene, police said.
“One of the suspects ran away while the vehicle fled and actually struck the female victim,” Oberon said.
girl — was identified by police on Wednesday Patricia McKay, 68 — was pronounced dead at the scene. Her husband is believed to be uninjured, Oberon said.
The suspect, who fled on foot, fired three rounds before getting into a vehicle, police said. Police said no one was injured in the shooting.
Officers responded to reports of a robbery and pursued a suspicious vehicle. Police said one of the suspects fled on foot after stopping the vehicle in Cyprus.
Two other suspects were arrested in Los Angeles County after abandoning the vehicle and fleeing on foot, police said.
The suspects were taken to the Newport Beach Police Department jail and booked on charges of murder, robbery with a firearm and conspiracy, police said.
They were identified by police Wednesday as Leroyernest Joseph McCrary, 26, of Compton; Jaden Cunningham, 18, of Lancaster; and Malachi Edward Darnell, 18, of Los Angeles. It is unclear whether they have a lawyer who can speak on their behalf.
Police said there were no suspects. The incident remains under investigation.
Newport Beach Mayor Will O’Neill condemned the “shocking, appalling act.”
“Newport Beach is a safe community and we mourn the loss of someone today, a loss that should never have happened,” he said during a press conference Tuesday. “Obviously, to hell with these guys. They came into our town knowing they were going to commit a crime, and a woman died today because of it. It’s heartbreaking, it’s a tragedy.”
