String of robberies in Monterey County Friday leaves one dead, one injured

One person is dead and one person is injured after a string of robberies Monterey County Friday morning.

Just after 7 a.m., a man was found shot to death inside his car off Highway 68 near Creekside Drive and Old Reservation Road. Monterey County Sheriff’s deputies say the man’s wife found him.

About 40 minutes later, deputies responded to Castroville where two men were robbed while walking to work on Del Monte Avenue in Castroville. One of the men was shot in the stomach but is expected to survive.

Shortly afterward, a high school student waiting at a bus stop in Castroville was reportedly robbed. The student was not injured.

In each incident, a black Honda was reportedly at the scene and deputies believe the same person is responsible for all three robberies. The car may have been stolen out of Salinas, deputies said.

Friday afternoon, deputies said they have a 19-year-old man in custody, though as of 3 p.m., his name had not been released. The man was arrested near a home on Nogal Street in Salinas where a car believed to be the suspect Honda was found.

Gang task force officers cleared the home and were searching it for evidence. Deputies said Friday afternoon there were no outstanding suspects.

In what appears to be an unrelated incident, shots were reported from a mobile home park in Castroville just after 9 a.m., prompting a temporary lockdown at nearby North Monterey County High School. The lockdown was lifted just after 9:30 a.m., no injuries reported.