HIALEAH, Fla. — A Hialeah woman lured two victims leaving a bank into an armed robbery in a Presidente Supermarket parking lot after pretending to need a jump for her vehicle, police said.
But, according to an arrest report, suspect Laura Elena Leyva made a serious miscalculation: She didn’t realize that the women had been there to deposit, rather than withdraw, money ― and didn’t even make off with enough cash to pay for a fast food meal nowadays.
Hialeah police said Leyva, 23, pulled into the Chase Bank branch at 1546 W. 49th St. soon after the victims arrived after midnight to deposit money.
Police said Leyva began following the two after they left and, while at the intersection of West 12th Avenue and 29th Street, drove alongside the victims and “asked them for assistance with jumper cables for her vehicle.”
Authorities said the women agreed to help out and they and Leyva pulled into the parking lot of the Presidente Supermarket at 1060 W. 29th St.
Police said Leyva got out of her car, went up to the victims’ window and pulled out a gun, demanding in Spanish that the two “relinquish the money they had withdrawn from the bank earlier.”
According to the report, the victim told Leyva, “Please don’t do this” and explained that she hadn’t withdrawn anything.
Police said the victim, “fearing for her life,” told Leyva she had money in the center console, grabbed the cash and handed it to her.
According to the arrest report, Leyva left with a paltry $8, having committed a felony that could land her in prison for life.
On top of that, records show she was out on bond for felony drug charges at the time of the crime.
Authorities said they were able to identify Leyva through surveillance footage and the victims later picked her out of a lineup.
Police said they surveilled Leyva on Wednesday and arrested her after a traffic stop at Northwest 35th Place and 103rd Street, just outside of the Hialeah city limits.
They said she invoked her right to remain silent.
Records show that Leyva was being held in the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center with a bond listed as “to be set” as of Thursday afternoon.
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