California suspect arrested for robbing two Poway massage parlors at knifepoint

POWAY, Calif. — Authorities arrested a 22-year-old man Monday morning on suspicion of robbing two massage parlors at knifepoint over the weekend.

Thomas Colden faces multiple charges including robbery, assault with a deadly weapon, and sexual assault, according to the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department. He is currently being held on $600,000 bail.

The crime spree began Saturday night when a masked man armed with a knife entered Poway Spa. The suspect threatened and struck a woman before fleeing with an undisclosed amount of cash.

Minutes later, a second robbery was reported at the nearby Lavender Spa. Investigators collected surveillance footage from both locations to track the suspect.

A security camera at a neighboring business captured a green Dodge Challenger leaving the area. A detective recognized the vehicle from a previous investigation and identified Colden as the suspect.

License plate reader data confirmed the car was in the vicinity of both spas at the time of the robberies. Deputies took Colden into custody in a Poway residential neighborhood.

The swift arrest in Poway serves as a case study in how surveillance technology is fundamentally reshaping local law enforcement in the United States. The integration of private security footage with government-operated Automated License Plate Readers (ALPR) has established a pervasive monitoring grid, even within suburban jurisdictions. For investigative agencies, the ability to aggregate these disparate data streams has compressed the timeline for identifying and locating suspects from weeks to mere hours.

However, this case also demonstrates that human intelligence remains the critical linchpin. The decisive breakthrough occurred when a detective recognized the suspect’s vehicle from a previous investigation into indecent exposure. This underscores that institutional memory and officer intuition continue to be indispensable assets, providing the connective tissue between data points that a standalone algorithm might overlook.

Furthermore, the incident highlights the systemic vulnerabilities of small businesses, specifically within the spa and massage industry. These establishments are frequently targeted by criminals who perceive them as cash-heavy operations with rudimentary security and a predominantly female workforce. The Poway attack, marked by extreme violence and sexual assault, underscores the acute safety risks faced by employees in this sector, necessitating a broader discussion on workplace protection and targeted policing strategies.

This robbery hits close to home for the Vietnamese-American community and other Asian American groups, many of whom own or work in local nail salons and spas. These small businesses are often perceived as "soft targets" because they typically handle significant amounts of cash and employ a predominantly female workforce, factors that unfortunately heighten the risk of violent crime.

The incident in Poway has heightened safety concerns across the community, especially for those on the front lines of the personal service industry. In response, many Vietnamese business owners are likely to reinforce their security protocols—upgrading to high-definition surveillance, encouraging cashless payments, and installing emergency alarm systems. Beyond the physical risks, the lingering fear of being targeted weighs heavily on the morale and mental well-being of both shop owners and their staff.