Long Beach police say Mellaki Hanzome Easter and a 16-year-old were arrested August 7 after the July armed robbery of an off-duty officer.
| Incident | July 12, 2026 near Bixby Road and Orange Avenue, Long Beach |
|---|---|
| Adult Suspect | Mellaki Hanzome Easter, 22 |
| Juvenile Suspect | 16-year-old Los Angeles resident; name withheld |
| Arrest Date | August 7, 2026 |
| Bookings | Two robbery counts and one assault-with-a-deadly-weapon count each |
| Case Status | Police investigation ongoing; filing consideration pending |
The July Robbery
Long Beach Police Department said an off-duty officer was near Bixby Road and Orange Avenue at about 1:30 p.m. on July 12 when two people approached him at gunpoint and robbed him. Police said the officer fired shots toward the suspects as they fled. No injuries were reported. Because shots were fired by an officer, homicide detectives responded as part of the department’s officer-involved-shooting investigative process even though the public-facing criminal investigation centered on the alleged armed robbery.
Initial Suspect Search
The frozen Crimes of the Week headline reflected the public-search stage. Detectives released information about a black Mercedes-Benz ML 350 and sought help identifying suspects. Police initially believed three people might have been involved. That public appeal was a reasonable headline in July, but it became stale when investigators later identified suspects and SWAT teams served warrants in Los Angeles.
August 7 Arrests
According to the official August 10 update, Long Beach and Los Angeles police SWAT teams served search warrants during the early morning of August 7. Officers arrested Mellaki Hanzome Easter, a 22-year-old Los Angeles resident, in the 1300 block of 118th Street. A 16-year-old Los Angeles boy was arrested in the 12200 block of Elva Avenue. The juvenile’s name was withheld because of his age.
Booking Allegations
Police said Easter was booked on two counts of robbery and one count of assault with a deadly weapon. His bail was set at $100,000. The juvenile was booked on the same allegations and was being held without bail in the police update. Booking counts describe the basis on which police took the suspects into custody; they should not be confused with a final charging document, guilty plea or conviction.
Additional Los Angeles Robbery Allegation
LBPD said detectives also learned that the same two suspects were allegedly involved in another robbery in the City of Los Angeles. The August 10 release did not provide enough detail to responsibly identify a victim, location or separate filing in that matter. This article therefore notes the allegation because police included it in the arrest update but does not attempt to fill gaps with assumptions.
District Attorney Review
Police said detectives would present the case to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office for filing consideration. That distinction matters. An arrest and police booking can occur before prosecutors decide which charges, if any, to file in court. The most recent verified completed event used for the post date is the August 7 arrest. The August 10 press release is the public announcement of that event, not a later court outcome.
Officer Gunfire
The off-duty officer fired toward the fleeing suspects during the July incident. The department said no injuries were reported. Because police characterized the incident as involving officer gunfire, homicide detectives responded to investigate. The sources reviewed do not establish a criminal finding against the officer, and this article does not imply one. The relevant verified point is that the shooting was part of the circumstances investigators examined while pursuing the robbery suspects.
Evidence and Investigation
The public record describes detective work that connected the suspects to the vehicle and led to search warrants. Search-warrant affidavits, surveillance evidence and other investigative material may contain additional details, but those materials were not necessary to establish the central update: two named or identified suspects were arrested. Police said the investigation remained ongoing and continued to request information from the public.
What Changed
The old story asked readers to help police identify suspects. By August 7, that was no longer the case. Police had made two arrests, released Easter’s name, disclosed the juvenile’s age, listed booking allegations and bail status, and said the case would be sent to prosecutors. A full rebuild avoids leaving a search notice live after the search had produced arrests.
Presumption of Innocence
Easter and the juvenile have not been convicted based on the sources reviewed for this update. The booking allegations remain unresolved, and the district attorney’s filing decision may change the formal posture. Any later filed complaint, detention order, plea, dismissal, trial result or sentence should replace this arrest-stage description once verified.
What to Watch in the Filing Stage
The next procedural question is what the Los Angeles County District Attorney decides to file after reviewing the police investigation. Prosecutors can adopt the booking allegations, modify them, add counts supported by evidence or decline a proposed count. The juvenile case may also follow procedures different from the adult case, so the two suspects should not automatically be described as having identical court outcomes merely because police listed the same booking allegations at arrest. Bail can likewise change after a court appearance. Easter’s $100,000 figure and the juvenile’s no-bail status are the police-reported custody conditions at the arrest stage, not guaranteed long-term detention outcomes. Future updates should therefore verify the charging document and court ruling for each suspect separately. If the additional Los Angeles robbery produces a separate filing, it should be identified as a distinct incident rather than blended into the Long Beach case without a case number or prosecutor record tying the matters together. This keeps the article useful as the investigation moves from police custody into formal prosecution.
Record-Keeping Note
The August 7 arrest date, rather than the August 10 press-release date, controls this update because the arrests themselves are the substantive event.
Sources
- Long Beach Police Department, Aug. 10, 2026
- CBS Los Angeles, Aug. 10, 2026
- Long Beach Post, Aug. 10, 2026
- MyNewsLA, Aug. 10, 2026
- CBS Los Angeles, July 18, 2026
Police allegations and bookings are not findings of guilt. Both suspects are entitled to the presumption of innocence in any criminal proceeding.
