UKIAH, CA., 9/23/24 – Man arrested on suspicion of armed robbery, attempted murder at Ukiah motel
Detectives arrested a 36-year-old man last week in connection with an armed robbery and attempted murder at a Ukiah motel, the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office said Monday.
The case began on Sept. 9 just before 11 p.m., when deputies were called to the Motel 6 at 1340 North State Street in Ukiah. The Sheriff’s Office was advised that a man was attempting to take a woman against her will. The caller reported seeing the man chasing the woman and believed that a domestic dispute had occurred.
Upon arrival at the motel, deputies saw the door to room 134 open with a clear view inside, the Sheriff’s Office said. After completing a sweep of the room, no victims were located in or around it.
Witnesses told investigators that they thought a robbery had occurred, with one witness saying he heard a man screaming as he ran toward the back of the motel, “falling as though he had been shot before getting up and running,” the Sheriff’s Office said. The witness said they heard four or five gunshots come from room 134.
On Sept. 10, a man contacted the Sheriff’s Office and said he had been the victim of a robbery at Motel 6. He said he had been violently assaulted on Sept. 9 and that his friend had been shot during the robbery. The man also told deputies the suspect tried to shoot and kill him during the robbery.
The following day on Sept. 11, room 134 was processed by detectives for evidence and a suspected bullet hole was found in the wall facing the front door. Blood was also found on the trim of the bathroom door, on the toilet, and on the wall below the bathroom window.
Other evidence was located and processed, consistent with a violent act occurring with a firearm inside the motel room, the Sheriff’s Office said.
Just after 1:15 a.m. on Sept. 13, deputies were informed that a man had arrived at a Willits emergency room suffering from a gunshot wound to his hands that had occurred several days earlier. According to the Sheriff’s Office, the victim provided a statement to investigators.
Follow up interviews revealed that a woman had also been involved in the robbery, and she was later found and interviewed.
Ultimately, detectives zeroed in on Michael France, 36, as a person of interest in the robbery and shooting case, the Sheriff’s Office said.
On Sept. 13, France was scheduled to appear in a courtroom in Lake County. Investigators learned he also had a separate misdemeanor warrant unrelated to the alleged robbery.
“Due to the severity of the current investigation (armed robbery / attempted murder) and detectives’ knowledge that France has a history of violent offenses and would more than likely attempt to avoid capture, it was decided to attempt and arrest France in a controlled setting at the courthouse,” the Sheriff’s Office said in a press release on Monday.
France was arrested on Sept. 16 and his motorcycle, which was believed to be used during the alleged armed robbery and a subsequent high-speed pursuit with the California Highway Patrol, was seized as evidence. A search of the motorcycle allegedly revealed evidence linking France to the armed robbery.
France was booked into the Mendocino County Jail on suspicion of attempted murder, robbery, using a firearm to cause great bodily injury, assault with a firearm, and being a felon in possession of a firearm. He is being held on $780,000 bail.
Anyone with information related to this investigation is asked to please contact the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office Communications Center at (707) 463-4086 (option 1). Information can also be provided anonymously by calling the non-emergency tip-line at (707) 234-2100.
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