On Thursday, August 22, 2013 at 3:04 pm, the Williams Police Department was dispatched to the Burger King restaurant located at 480 ‘E’ Street in Williams, in response to an armed robbery that just occurred. Upon arrival, officers determined that 39 year-old Angelo Franco, Jr, of Ventura, California had entered the restaurant and approached a clerk, displaying a handgun and demanded the contents of the cash register. The clerk complied with Franco’s demands.
As Franco was leaving, he was confronted by an unnamed witness. Franco brandished his firearm at the witness and the witness struck Franco with a metal bar.
Franco’s then fled the parking lot, in a small black Dodge pick-up, northbound on Interstate 5 with an undisclosed amount of cash. The witness then, in his own vehicle, followed the Franco onto northbound Interstate 5.
Williams Police Sergeant Steve Woldanski located the witness and Franco’s vehicles traveling northbound Interstate 5 toward Maxwell. Sgt. Woldanski pursued the suspect into Glenn County with the assistance of Williams Area California Highway Patrol and Colusa County Sheriff’s Deputies.
The pursuit was subsequently relinquished to Glenn and Colusa CHP units.
CHP units successfully deployed spike strips and stopped the vehicle on County Road 57, south of Willows.
Franco was arrested for armed robbery, brandishing a firearm, recklessly evading peace officers and driving under the influence of a drug. Franco was booked into the Colusa County Jail on $50,000 bail. Franco also was arrested for a felony drug warrant from Ventura County.
The stolen cash was recovered.
Anyone with information regarding this crime is asked to call the Williams Police Department at (530) 473-2661.