Police Say Armed Robber On South Coast Caught After Getting Stuck In Labor Day Traffic

Santa Barbara Police say they seized these guns from an armed robbery suspect Monday night.
(Santa Barbara Police Department photo)

Police say an armed robber in Santa Barbara didn’t think through his escape plan very well, making him easy to catch.  Santa Barbara Police detectives say Russell Bradley Wallace robbed an Upper State Street gas station at around 5 Monday night.

The Ventura man then jumped on Highway 101, headed south.  But, detectives say what the 29 year old man apparently didn’t think about was Labor Day weekend traffic. 

Highway 101 southbound is traditionally bumper-to-bumper Labor Day evening, with people headed home from the holiday weekend.

Wallace got stuck in traffic, and was pulled over and stopped without incident.  Police say they recovered items from the robbery, as well as a pistol, assault rifle, and an armored vest.

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Lance Orozco has been News Director of KCLU since 2001, providing award-winning coverage of some of the biggest news events in the region, including the Thomas and Woolsey brush fires, the deadly Montecito debris flow, the Borderline Bar and Grill attack, and Ronald Reagan's funeral.