easy pickin's

◼ Eureka armed robbery suspect Ezra Williams in custody
Ezra “Easy” Williams, named as a suspect in more than a half dozen armed robberies in the Eureka area, is in custody after being arrested Wednesday night in the San Diego area.

The good news is he is in custody, and he didn't get himself shot, and he didn't take any others with him.

Now the question of course is - how long til he is back out on the street?

So, is he behind all these robberies, or are there a bunch of copycats?
◼ Eureka robbery rash worsens; gas station holdup is No. 9 since March 25
An early morning armed robbery of a Broadway gas station in Eureka on Tuesday makes it nine holdups of city businesses in less than a month.

At 12:48 a.m., Eureka police were dispatched to the Patriot gas station on the 1700 block of Broadway, where the store owner and his teenage son reported having been robbed. They told police that a man armed with a handgun and another armed with a knife entered the station and demanded money, while a third man stood guard outside.

The three men fled east on West Wabash. The first is described as a male, possibly Asian between 5 feet, 6 inches and 5 feet, 8 inches tall, skinny, wearing a white hooded sweatshirt with a black mask covering his face. The second is 5 feet, 6 inches to 5 feet, 8 inches tall, medium build, wearing a black hooded sweatshirt with a black mask. The third was only seen from the back, wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, and of a similar height and build.

The robbery follows one on Monday afternoon, during which a man demanded OxyContin tablets from an employee of Cloney's pharmacy on Harrison. Seven other armed robberies since March 25 are believed to have been committed by 26-year-old Ezra Williams.

Eureka Detective Ron Harpham said the investigation into that string of robberies is ongoing, and that there is no new information to release.

◼ Eureka armed robbery suspect nabbed at Mexico border; Ezra Williams in custody after reportedly attempting to re-enter U.S.
EPD Detective Ron Harpham said he has been in periodic phone contact with Williams since April 15, and believes the suspect was already in Mexico at that time. He said he thinks Williams was returning to the U.S. on Wednesday to surrender to law enforcement in Humboldt County.
”He knew he had to turn himself in,” Harpham said.

...If Harpham is correct that Williams left town on April 8, it seems the last robbery he could have committed in the area was at Sal's Off Broadway bar in the early morning hours of April 8.
Williams had been considered armed and dangerous, and there was some question if he would surrender peacefully if tracked down by law enforcement. According to EPD, Williams had stated to an acquaintance that he would not go to jail and would “go out gangster style,” although others reportedly told police Williams wanted to get caught. Police said they believed Williams may have been using methamphetamine and heroin, which may have accounted for the differing statements.

According to Humboldt County court records, Williams has a trio of convictions on his rap sheet, all for petty theft, with two occurring in 2005 and another in 2008. He was also arrested March 17 on suspicion of possessing heroin for sale and transportation of heroin for sale. He posted bail after the arrest, and Humboldt County Assistant District Attorney Wes Keat said earlier this month that his office was seeking an arrest warrant on charges stemming from that incident.
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Robberies investigated in connection with Ezra Williams:
March 25: Radio Shack on Myrtle Avenue at 9:30 a.m. (Williams booked on this case)
March 27: Texaco gas station on Broadway in the early-morning hours
March 31: Performance Fuels on Broadway at 1:40 a.m.
April 6: Madsen Realty on Christie Street at 10:49 a.m.
April 6: Bank of America on F Street at 2:11 p.m. (Williams booked on this case)
April 8: Sal's Off Broadway bar on Albee Street at 2:30 a.m.
April 12: Safeway on Harris Street and Harrison Avenue at 10:45 p.m.
Editor's note: Williams was booked in two cases noted above, the Radio Shack and the Bank of America robberies. The rest remain under investigation.