BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KBAK/KBFX) — Two suspected gang members were arrested in Palmdale after Bakersfield police used an automated license plate reader to find their vehicle following a September 26 robbery on 34th Street.
The Bakersfield Police Department said on Saturday, September 26th, 2026, at around 1:37 p.m., the department responded to the 1000 block of 34th Street for a report of a robbery.
Police said based on the initial information and suspect description, 20-year-old Amos Marchbanks and 20-year-old JW West, both suspected gang members, were identified as the suspects and were believed to be armed.
BPD said exigent measures were taken to find and apprehend Marchbanks and West, including entering the suspect vehicle information into the automated license plate reader (ALPR) system.
The Bakersfield Police Department was later notified by the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department that the suspect vehicle had been captured on a camera in their jurisdiction.
Marchbanks and West were later found and taken into custody in Palmdale and turned over to the Bakersfield Police Department.
Both men were later booked into the Lerdo Justice Facility for applicable charges, including robbery, conspiracy and participation in a criminal street gang.
“The real-time ALPR notification was pivotal in locating these violent gang members quickly, across distant jurisdictions, and was only possible through collaborative use of available technology used by both departments,” said in a release.