Two men have been charged in connection with a string of armed robberies targeting 7-Eleven stores across the San Fernando Valley, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office told News Of Losangeles Investigates exclusively.
At a Glance
- Lorenzo Byrd, 23, and Samuel Mandefro, 29, each face four counts of second-degree robbery.
- The pair allegedly robbed two 7-Elevens on January 3 while employees were inside.
- Byrd could receive more than 43 years in state prison if convicted on all counts.
- Mandefro, with prior convictions, faces up to 25 years to life under the three-strikes law.
- Investigators are examining whether the men are tied to six additional 7-Eleven robberies and two shoe-store holdups.
The district attorney’s office said the suspects committed three holdups within hours of one another, beginning with a December 28, 2025 robbery and followed by another on December 30, 2025. Court filings state that during the January 3 incidents, both men brandished weapons inside the convenience stores while employees were present.
Byrd has no prior strikes listed in the complaint, but the cumulative exposure for the four new charges plus gun enhancements pushes his potential sentence past four decades. Mandefro’s prior record triggers a possible life term if prosecutors successfully apply the three-strikes statute.
Law-enforcement sources told News Of Losangeles the investigation remains active and that additional charges could be filed as detectives work to link the defendants to at least six more 7-Eleven robberies and two shoe-store heists that occurred around the same period.
The district attorney’s office declined to detail what evidence tied Byrd and Mandefro to the crimes, citing the ongoing nature of the case. Both men are being held in county jail and are expected to appear in court for arraignment within the next two weeks.
Daniel J. Whitman reported.
