Armed robbery suspect nabbed in San Luis Obispo

A real estate agent robbed of her purse at gunpoint at an open house last month helped San Luis Obispo police arrest a suspect Wednesday after spotting him outside a supermarket.

Investigators believe the man, 64-year-old transient David Albertsen, may be responsible for as many as five robberies throughout the county, according to the Atascadero Police Department.

Police said the woman, who was robbed April 27 while showing a house in Atascadero, saw the man while walking outside the San Luis Obispo grocery store and immediately called 9-1-1 on her cell phone.

Albertsen was arrested and booked into San Luis Obispo County Jail on suspicion of felony robbery and weapons-related offenses, police said.

The Atascadero crime was similar to four robberies that occurred in recent weeks, including at a real estate office in Arroyo Grande and a hotel room in Pismo Beach.

Investigators from Arroyo Grande, Pismo Beach, San Luis Obispo, Paso Robles and Atascadero have been working together following up on leads in an effort to identify a suspect.