Man reportedly pistol-whipped in head during Bellingham robbery
A Bellingham man is one of three people suspected in a robbery early Saturday, June 6, outside the Bellingham Quality Inn on Kellogg Road, that saw one victim hit and pistol-whipped in the head.
Isaiah R. Rocha, 18, was booked into Whatcom County Jail Sunday on suspicion of first-degree robbery, second-degree theft, fourth-degree assault and unlawful possession of a firearm, and jail records show he was released Monday on $30,000 bail.
Bellingham police are still investigating two other suspects’ involvement in the incident, Lt. Claudia Murphy told The Bellingham Herald in an email.
Officers responded to the Quality Inn at 4:36 a.m. for the report of a robbery involving firearms and spoke to two victims, one who had two lumps on his head, Murphy reported.
The investigation revealed the two victims met with one of the unnamed suspects inside a car, and shortly after they got in, two men, one of whom was Rocha, approached the car pointing guns at the two victims, Murphy wrote.
They dragged one of the victims out of the car, Murphy reported, and punched and hit him in the head with their guns and demanded his wallet. The second victim also got out of the car and was reportedly punched in the eye.
Rocha and the other two suspects then went into the hotel, where surveillance video showed them go into a room and then leave in a truck, Murphy wrote. One of the officers identified Rocha from the video.
At approximately 10:18 p.m. Sunday, officers spotted the truck driven by Rocha and with the other two suspects inside parked in the back lot of another hotel along Samish Way, Murphy reported.
Rocha pulled out of the parking lot, and officers made a high-risk traffic stop on Interstate 5 north of Guide Meridian, where they took Rocha into custody without incident.
