Taxi driver was yesterday remanded to prison on a charge of murdering a storeowner in 2006 when he appeared before Acting Chief Magistrate Melissa Robertson at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court.28-year-old Sherwin Sampson of 2091 Williamstaad Road, North Ruimveldt was not required to plead to the indictable offence when it was read to him.It was alleged that on September 26, 2006 at Georgetown, Sampson murdered store owner Shirool Persaud. She was shot dead when two bandits rushed into her store just before noon on bustling Regent Street, Georgetown.Persaud was shot several times in the head and about the body while she tried to fight off the two bandits who struck while she was in the cashier’s cage and with employees around.
Ajodha Persaud, the woman’s husband, said the two fled with an undisclosed sum of money, the takings from the previous day’s sale at their Boyo’s Variety Store.Police in a press release had said the man with the gun suddenly rushed into the cashier’s cage through the doorway and demanded cash. During the robbery, the man discharged several rounds hitting Shirool about the body.When given the opportunity to speak Sampson declined.His matter was transferred to Court Two for February 13 so that a date could be fixed for the commencement of the preliminary inquiry.
“You want to play?” Figueira asked the gunman who was standing near the table with the stack of dominoes.“Play?” the man with the shotgun replied. “We…doan…play…games.”
Then he squeezed the trigger…Brentnol Figueira was probably the last person in the Player’s Club to notice the gunmen, even though the short one with the shotgun was standing just behind him.Figueira didn’t notice because he was backing the entrance, and because he was absorbed in a domino game, and because he was slightly intoxicated.Perhaps things might have turned out differently that Friday night of June 10, 2005, had he not been drinking.But perhaps not. The gunmen who had spawned the country’s ‘crime wave’— into its fourth year at the time — sometimes seemed to kill just for the fun of it.When they weren’t targeting civilians, they were targeting the police, and when they weren’t targeting the lawmen, they were targeting each other.Maybe it was just Brentnol Figueira’s time.
Now don’t let the fancy name fool you. The Player’s Club, or Nicky’s Shop, as it was also called, was just a small, roughly-built structure with a few benches and a television set.Part shop, part beer garden, it was the only hangout spot in ‘E’ Field, Sophia, one of the most impoverished sections of the community. There’s still no electricity in the area, though the proprietor of the Player’s Club had a generator.Figueira and his wife, Dianne, a teacher by profession, lived some 300 metres away in ‘D’ Field, Sophia, in a two-storey concrete house.A regular patron of the Club, he was a jovial, free-handed individual, who seldom had to be asked twice to buy a round or two.At around 14:00 hrs on June 10, 2005, Figueira arrived home and handed his salary to his wife.He explained to her that he was going to complete some work before going for a drink with friends.Figueira returned home at around 18:00 hrs, while his wife was preparing dinner.“You want to go to the Fish Shop?” he asked Dianne.Dianne looked at her husband and immediately realized that he had taken one drink too many.No, she replied. She didn’t want to go to the Fish Shop.
“You see how you stay? I wan’ go out and I got to beg you like we still courting,” Brentnol teased.Dianne, a Seventh Day Adventist, pointed out that her ‘Sabbath’ was approaching. Besides, she said, it was dark. She suggested that Brentnol take an early rest.But Brentnol Figueira would have none of that. He told his wife that he was going “up the road”.Telling Dianne he would send a ‘runner’ (one of the youths in the community) with a mosquito coil and a Malta for her, Brentnol then left for the Player’s Club.On arrival, Figueira bought a bottle of Banko wine, settled into a corner with a few friends and became engaged in a game of dominoes.Other patrons focused on a movie that was being shown on the television set.And so none of them saw when the five men suddenly appeared.Four of them had handguns. The fifth, a short individual, brandished a shotgun.Three of the gunmen remained on guard outside while the other two, including the one with the shotgun, entered the night spot.
One of the men walked over to the section of the shop which the proprietor and his wife occupied.The short man with the shotgun took up position a few feet from Figueira.By now, some of the patrons had become aware of their presence. However, many assumed that the men were police ranks. After all, the cops conducted regular raids in the area.Figueira, though, backing the entrance, was still engrossed in his wine and his domino game.Some of the patrons were reacting too slowly for the bandits’ liking and the short bandit with the shotgun said: “Like y’all want I shoot.”He was within earshot of Brentnol Figueira, who now became aware of the men’s presence.Turning around in his seat, Figueira said loudly: “Is who deh talking ‘bout shooting?”“Shut yuh mouth,” the short bandit with the shotgun said menacingly.
Still unaware of the danger, the slightly intoxicated Figueira said jovially: “Y’all is police? Y’all want play? Is twenty dollar a love.”The short gunman edged closer to Figueira.“Game?” he said. “We …doan… play… games.”He pointed the shotgun at Figueira. He cocked his weapon.And still, it seemed, Figueira didn’t sense the danger.He said: “Jus suh you gun shoot me?”The gunman squeezed the trigger.
The blast hurled Figueira from his seat. He was dead before he hit the ground.
After her husband left for the club, Dianne Figueira decided to go over to a female neighbour who was also one of her best friends.Father’s Day was two Sundays away, but the two women were already making plans.They eventually decided to buy shirts for their husbands.At around 21:00 hrs, Dianne informed the friend that she was leaving.But just as she reached the door, both women heard a loud explosion nearby.
“That sound like a cannon,” Dianne said.“Girl, how they gun got cannon in Guyana?” the friend retorted. “That is a gunshot.”Dianne Figueira immediately hurried home. She was taking a bath when she heard someone calling outside.Finishing her bath, Mrs. Figueira hurried to her door. Two boys from the community were standing by her gate.She greeted them.
“Yu husband get shoot,” one of the boys said.
She had heard the boom of the shotgun just minutes before, yet Dianne Figueira refused to connect that gunshot to her husband.
“You mad,” she told the boys. “My husband can’t get shoot.”
“Yes,” the boys replied. “He get shot and he dead.”
Accompanied by the youths, Dianne Figueira rushed over to the Player’s Club. There, she saw her husband lying motionless on the ground.
She shook him. She tried to revive him. But, from the huge hole in his chest, she knew that he was dead.Some of the victims would later recall that after killing Figueira, the gunmen relieved the beer garden owner, Linden Headley, of $30,000 and also took his wife’s earrings.They also relieved the patrons, numbering about 20, of small sums of cash after ordering them to lie on the ground. Some claimed they were beaten.They also took coins from some children who were at the shop with their parents.The eyewitnesses said that the men also tried to cart off a generator, but eventually ditched it nearby and wended their way further into ‘E’ Field, Sophia.
Word of the killing spread quickly, and a squad of ‘black clothes’ policemen, guns at the ready, made their way in pitch darkness through the backlands to the murder scene.But by then, the gunmen had vanished.
They have never been identified.
Within a week the Player’s Club was closed. The owners packed up and left, never to return. Some other residents also left the area, though a few are now returning.
Dianne Figueira says that she still has not recovered from the trauma of her husband’s violent death.
“I am not afraid,” she told me last week. “I just feel a sadness, a great loss. It affected me (tremendously). I have to do everything on my own. My husband was always there to assist me.”
And she still wonders what fate has befallen the gunmen who killed him.
She takes some comfort in the belief that they might have been slain over the past few years, during encounters with the Joint Services’, which has apparently wiped out many of the key players in the crime wave.
“I guess that these guys might have died, the Force was working overtime (to catch the criminals).
Every bad man gets his day.”
Two men, one of whom was wanted by police, were shot, and killed during an early morning chase on Saturday. Dead are Ian Francis, and Damien Roberts. Francis who was wanted by police in connection with several robberies, lived at Bhagna Trace, Chase Village, Couva, while Roberts lived at Todds Road, Caparo. According to police, officers received a telephone call shortly after 2am, informing them of a robbery at the Open House Restaurant and Bar on Factory Road, Chaguanas. An All Points Bulletin was sent out for a blue Mazda 323. Police officers from the Inter-Agency Task Force, along with Snr Supt Edwards, ASP O’Garro, and Insp McIntire, set up a roadblock near Ravine Sable Junction, Longdenville and the car was intercepted a short while later.
Upon seeing the police the men reportedly opened fire on the officers, and the officers returned fire. When the smoke cleared the two men were found slumped in the driver’s, and front passenger’s seats of the vehicle. Both were taken to the Chaguanas Health Facility where they were pronounced dead. Officers reportedly discovered a firearm in the car, as well as an undisclosed sum of cash.
Three men wanted over the armed robbery of the Urunga Bowling Club remain at large.
Police say the trio were armed with implements when they entered the club about midnight AEDT on Friday and demanded money from staff.They fled in a stolen car, which was later intercepted by highway patrol officers at Eungai and pursued through the lower Macleay.Police say when the car left the road and crashed into a shallow creek near Crescent Head, the men fled into bushland.Two of the alleged armed robbers are described as being of Aboriginal appearance, between 165 and 175 centimetres tall.The third suspect is described as about 160 centimetres tall, of solid build and with dark tanned skin.
Three bandits escaped with cash, jewellery and a cell phone on Saturday night, after invading the Kamboat Restaurant on Sheriff Street. They later injured a motor cyclist while fleeing in a car.A police release said that cashier Sabrina Gobin and waitress Claudia Chase, along with two males and a female patron, were in the restaurant at around 21:20 hrs when three armed men entered and held them at gunpointThe robbers relieved the victims of US$1,000, GY$177,000., a cell phone and a quantity of jewellery before escaping in a waiting car.As the bandits were escaping, their vehicle struck down motor cyclist Rabindra Lall, of Campbell Street, Campbellville. He was treated at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation.
Three well-dressed, greying bandits have been hitting small businesses in central Alberta.RCMP in Rocky Mountain House, Alta., say they believe a liquor store and a supply store were targeted by the team in November and that the group has also been active in Leduc and Drumheller.RCMP said all three are well-dressed and in their late 40s to mid-50s.In each case, one will act as the lookout, one will distract the clerk and the third, a tall, thin man with short, grey hair who is always wearing a hat, will go for the cash register.One bandit is balding and has a sharp chin and glasses.Police said another can be identified by his cloak, a navy blue winter coat with deep red lining clearly visible around the collar.Rocky Mountain House is about 220 kilometres southwest of Edmonton, Leduc is just south of Edmonton, and Drumheller is about 140 kilometres northeast of Calgary.
Several people were robbed at gunpoint during two incidents this weekend, and Lodi police believe the same suspects may be responsible for both crimes.The incidents were possibly gang-related, police said, but they had not identified suspects by Monday. Two people had minor injuries.At 1:50 a.m. Sunday, police were sent to Maple Street, said Lodi Police Sgt. Bill Alexander.There police learned that several people had been playing cards in a backyard when four or five males entered the yard, one brandishing a sawed-off shotgun.The suspects took the victims' money at gunpoint before fleeing. One victim was assaulted in the process, but the wound was not life-threatening. Alexander did not have further information on the injury, as reports on the case were not finished.That crime happened a few blocks away and a little more than two hours after an attempted carjacking involving a shotgun.
Several people were robbed at gunpoint during two incidents this weekend, and Lodi police believe the same suspects may be responsible for both crimes.The incidents were possibly gang-related, police said, but they had not identified suspects by Monday. Two people had minor injuries.At 1:50 a.m. Sunday, police were sent to Maple Street, said Lodi Police Sgt. Bill Alexander.There police learned that several people had been playing cards in a backyard when four or five males entered the yard, one brandishing a sawed-off shotgun.The suspects took the victims' money at gunpoint before fleeing. One victim was assaulted in the process, but the wound was not life-threatening. Alexander did not have further information on the injury, as reports on the case were not finished.That crime happened a few blocks away and a little more than two hours after an attempted carjacking involving a shotgun.
Seth Cravens of La Jolla, California was convicted for the death of professional surfer, Emery Kauanui on November 18th, 2008. Cravens, 23, was a member of a La Jolly Gang who called themselves “The Bird Rock Bandits” and was today sentenced to 20 years to life in prison. It looks like Cravens will have to continue his Bird Rock Bandit chapter in prison. But I’m not too sure if they will take him very seriously in there. He might be taken seriously for a good fudge packing if you know what I mean. “Prosecutors unsuccessfully argued that the group’s behavior constituted a gang and had added gang allegations to the original charges. But Judge John S. Einhorn ruled that the alliance did not fit the definition of a gang under state law.” So John S. Einhorn, what exactly constitutes a gang? Are the Bird Rock Bandits not a “gang” because they’re name sounds more like a gay porno? Or is it because the Bird Rock Bandits don’t identify with a specific gang color making them neutral? I’ll just take a guess as to why they’re not considered a gang in your eyes. It’s probably because they don’t belong to a lower socio-economic bracket in our society considering after all, they do come from La Jolla. What would the rest of the world think if La Jolla was mentioned in the same breath as Watts or Boyle Heights? Honestly, I don’t think the rest of the world really cares. But you should call the Bird Rock Bandits for what they are. A group of low achievers who may be prone to violent or erratic behavior who through the organization, formation, and establishment of an assemblage share a common identity.
Bandit struck twice in a month, swathed in a hat and scarf, a blue and white umbrella in hand. Both times, the culprit produced notes demanding cash and fled on foot with the loot.Police said the first hit was at Washington Mutual Bank in Port Jefferson in December. The second, at a Chase branch in Mount Sinai on Jan. 7.
Textbook bank robberies, except for one fact: The robber is a she."Females account for maybe one or two cases a year, on the average," said Suffolk County Det. Sgt. Robert Doyle, commanding officer of the major case investigations unit. "It happens infrequently." Except recently, when three female robbers struck banks five times over four months in Suffolk, and one in Nassau. And in each case they have been the main or sole operative in the crime, bucking the usual M.O., of females working as accomplices. Such a trend - although it's over a short period of time - mirrors what experts say is occurring nationally."You are more likely now to have a Bonnie without a Clyde," said Rosemary J. Erickson, a South Dakota forensic sociologist and security consultant who has interviewed hundreds of bank robbers.Nationally, bank robberies by women have risen slightly from year to year since 2002, though they still now account for only about 6 percent of all bank robberies, according to FBI statistics. Female bank robbers are unusual enough that they often earn their own monikers, from the glamorous "Starlet Bandit" who robbed a bank in California last year; the "Barbie Bandits" in Atlanta, two giggling 19-year-olds who robbed a bank in 2007; and the "Cell Phone Bandit," who struck four banks in Virginia in 2005, all while talking on her cell phone.Robert McCrie, a professor of security management at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in Manhattan, said it was unusual to have several female robbers in a relatively short period. "I'd call them uncommon as sole operatives," said McCrie.
He said he wouldn't be surprised if the number of female bank robbers rises, as it's a "fairly safe kind of crime to commit in terms of personal risk."
"It's now a situation where it's becoming an equal opportunity crime. There's no barrier to women being bank robbers. It's not something where you require more muscle mass."
Suffolk police say that despite the recent spike, they haven't seen a long-term increase in female bank robberies or attempts. Nassau police also report few female bank robberies or attempts - but in all but one case in recent years women acted alone, said Det. Sgt. John Giambrone, commander of the Nassau police Robbery Squad. Only once did a woman produce a weapon. None of the Suffolk suspects used a gun.
Tod Burke, a professor of criminal justice at Radford University in Virginia, said female robbers rarely produce a weapon. "Females are really big into notes," he said. "They'll flip the note to a teller."
Giambrone said few of the female bank robbers in Nassau have been driven by drug addictions, a common reason cited by male bank robbers.
Suffolk police say crack cocaine was behind one woman's robbery of one bank and attempted robbery of another.
Jessica D. McNeil, 21, of Medford, was charged with the Sept. 23 robbery of the Bank of Smithtown branch in Centereach.
McNeil, who is out on bail, answered the door cheerfully in a bright pink robe Thursday at her grandmother's house in Medford. "It was basically just the drugs," the woman said when asked about the robberies, as a young child looked through the door. "I have to go feed my daughter," she added, before her grandmother yelled at her to come inside.
McNeil and a male accomplice were also charged with the attempted robbery of the Roslyn Savings Bank in Centereach on Sept. 25.
In the Sept. 23 case, McNeil placed a small piece of paper on a teller station, according to a witness statement.
"I have a gun," the note said. "I will shoot you. Give me all your money. Put in bag."
Still-unidentified armed men believed to be Abu Sayyaf bandits seized a Chinese businessman in Sulu late Monday afternoon.1Lt. Steffani Cacho, information officer of the Armed Forces’ Western Mindanao Command, said the incident took place at about 5:30 p.m. in barangay Kakuyagan, Jolo, the capital town of Sulu.Cacho identified the victim as Diongin Que, the owner of Lengs Restaurant.She said Que was abducted by five gunmen.Abu Sayyaf bandits are also holding three staffs members of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) who were seized on January 15.Cacho said responding policemen recovered the getaway vehicle of the kidnappers in barangay Tagbak, Indanan town.The kidnappers have not yet established communication with Que’s family. Que is the second Chinese businessman to be seized in Sulu in less than two months.The first was Xili Wu, alias Peter Go, who was kidnapped by Abu Sayyaf bandits last December 13 in downtown Jolo.Go, 28, is one of the five owners of Perlas Trading, which is engaged in the export of seafood.With Que’s kidnapping, the total number of people kidnapped in Sulu, Basilan and Zamboanga since the start of the year has increased to 11.The other victims are a businessman and three teachers from Zamboanga City; a midwife; and a nine-year-old child from Basilan, aside from the three ICRC staff members and two Chinese businessmen in Sulu.In Zamboanga City Mayor Celso Lobregat said he has allowed emissaries to negotiate for the release of the three public-school teachers.Lobregat said the emissaries voluntarily offered their services in working for the release of the teachers, who are assigned on the island-barangays of Zamboanga City.Lobregat stressed that any negotiation would not involve the payment of ransom.The kidnappers are asking a P6-million ransom for the three teachers.
There have been two raids already in 2009 and more than 20 robberies last year – an average of almost two a month.Police are appealing for information after three men armed with hammers stormed into the Chisholm bookie’s in Main Street, Crawcrook, on Sunday and took a small amount of cash.Two days before, three men armed with a hammer and crowbar jumped over the counter to steal an undisclosed quantity of cash at the Betfred shop in Helmsley Road, Sandyford, Newcastle.
Mozambican national was killed and his wife gang-raped in Mpumalanga province's Hazyview area on Sunday, police said. Superintendent Abie Khoabane on Monday said the 38-year-old man and his 35-year-old wife were accosted by a group of strangers who demanded money from them. When the man tried to fight them off, they beat him with an unknown object and he died at the scene. "They then gang-raped the man's wife. The suspects are still at large," said Khoabane. In another incident, police arrested a 25-year-old man for the rape of a five-year-old girl in Mpumalanga's KwaGuqa area. The man allegedly dragged the girl into his house on New Year's Day.
The suspect briefly appeared at the Witbank Magistrate's Court on Monday.
Young man narrowly escaped death after a gunman sneaked into his house, causing a shoot out as police tried to flush him out.The gangster was finally shot dead after nearly an hour of gun battle at Nairobi’s Bahati Estate on Monday.He had earlier been spotted with three accomplices trying to carjack a motorist on Jogoo Road. But the gang abandoned its mission after seeing police on patrol.Set house on fire
The officers concentrated on chasing the gang member carrying two pistols, while the others managed to escape.The chase ended at the house whose occupant the gangster held hostage.He set the house on fire, hoping it would distract attention and help him to escape, but he dashed out minutes later, choking on smoke.He was shot dead as he tried to run away. Only one firearm was recovered.
Deputies were searching Monday morning for two armed bank robbers and a getaway driver who hit the Citibank on Lomas Santa Fe Drive, sheriff's officials said.
A little after 9:30 a.m., two men brandishing revolvers ordered everyone in the bank to lie on the floor, Lt. Anthony Ray said.One man jumped into the tellers area and grabbed and undisclosed amount of cash, Ray said.Both men fled the bank and got into a light blue vehicle ---- but a witness reported seeing them ditch that vehicle not far from the bank in favor of a dark Nissan sedan with someone already behind the wheel, Ray said.No one was hurt during the robbery, he said.One robber is described as a black man, 6 feet tall wearing a white shirt. His partner was also a black man, about 5 feet 6 inches tall, dressed in black and wearing a stocking cap.The getaway driver may have been a black man, Ray said.At about 10 a.m., officers and deputies on Interstate 5 were following a car that fit the description of the getaway vehicle, but no information was available about whether the people in that car were identified as suspects in the robbery.
Two men reportedly robbed a Wachovia Bank at gunpoint this morning in Garden City.
The FBI is investigating the holdup, which happened about 11:30 a.m. at the branch, in the 4500 block of Augusta Road, said William Kirkconnell, supervisory senior resident agent for the FBI in Savannah.Authorities are searching for two black males, one about 5-foot-6 and the other about 6 feet, 4 inches tall, Kirkconnell said."The smaller robber controlled the lobby with a handgun, while the larger robber jumped the counter and removed the bank money," Kirkconnell said.The two were last seen running from the bank.
Woman needed hospital treatment after being robbed at knifepoint as she walked through a pub car park.The victim was with a friend when they were stopped by two masked men who demanded her bag.The woman handed over her bag, containing cash, and the attackers ran off through the pub car park and jumped over a fence towards allotments.Both were wearing black clothing, black balaclavas and one was wearing glasses.The woman suffered an injury to her back and face in the incident which happened at just before 12.20am, today, in the car park of the Lord Nelson pub in Monkton Village, Hebburn.She was taken to South Tyneside General Hospital.
Armed robbers exchanged gunfire with security guards in a crowded parking lot Monday afternoon, after an unsuccessful attempt to rob the Washington Mutual branch on Hesperia Road, officials said.Two to three men wearing hooded sweatshirts entered the bank in the 12600 block of Hesperia Road at about 12:30 p.m., one of them holding a long gun described as an AK-47, according to witnesses at the scene who did not want to be identified.“I saw the guy with a big old gun and I just ran out the back,” one witness said.Security guards held the men at the entry way of the bank and got into a scuffle with the robbers who are being described as two black men and one Hispanic man between the ages of 18 and 30, said Karen Hunt, spokeswoman for the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Victorville station.One shot was fired by a robber during the altercation, lodging a bullet into the ceiling, according to Hunt.
Witnesses also reported that when the robbers first attempted to enter the bank, they tried to take a female employee hostage.“It was amazing, because she was one of the most calm and composed people there and she was calming other people down,” said one bank patron.“There were about 30 patrons and about eight employees inside the bank at the time,” Hunt said. No one was hurt.The security guards were able to chase the men into the bank’s parking lot and exchanged gunfire with the robbers, but it is not known whether any of the criminals were hit, officials said.The robbers tried to drive south onto Hesperia Road, but struck a dark blue Mitsubishi, officials said. The getaway vehicle, a maroon hatchback or similar vehicle with major front-end damage, was seen in the area of Bear Valley and Industrial roads, officials said.
The men also robbed a woman in the parking lot before entering the bank, but it is not clear what they stole from the victim, Hunt said.The same location was robbed on Oct. 23.Many bank customers raised concerns that the bank does not have the same security measures in place as at the newer Washington Mutual offices, including metal detectors, possibly making it an easier target.Washington Mutual officials said that following any incident, they review the safety measures in place at a branch and determine what necessary steps need to be taken.“Our primary concerns for all of our branches is the safety of our customers .
Robbers, who were wearing scarves to cover their faces, targeted the Betfred shop in Helmsley Road, Newcastle, on Tuesday evening. The woman was locked up in a room in the shop, while the men broke into games machines and stole cash.
She was uninjured but shaken by her ordeal. Northumbria Police believe the raiders made off in a white vehicle.
Deputies are looking for three robbers who crashed a Christmas party and robbed the guests.Orange County deputies said about 20 people were inside a home on Sunderson Road around 12:30 a.m. Tuesday when three men, wearing hoodies and carrying handguns, broke in.The deputies said the men ordered the partygoers to get on the ground and demanded wallets and purses from everyone.Because of the home's location, investigators are checking to see if the suspects had prior knowledge of the party.
"The party was in a very remote area of Orange County at this house, it's off the beaten path. Unless the guys got lucky drove by and saw there was a party and decide to do a home invasion or perhaps they received information that there was going to be a large party there,” said Cmdr. Spike Hopkins, Orange County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies used dogs and a helicopter to search for the suspects, but they got away.
Metro Police say an armed suspect attempted to rob the El Michoacano supermarket in the 6200 block of West 34th Street just before 9 pm. All of the customers and employees in the store were ordered to move to one side of the store. Police believe the suspect, later identified as 23-year-old Christopher Barreto, didn't want any of the customers or employees to recognize him."He's armed with a silver handgun and he had a mask and gloves on," said IMPD Lt. Jeff Duhamell.As Barreto committed the robbery, police say an employee pressed a secret panic button. Another employee grabbed a gun kept inside the store for protection, but realized it was too risky to react right away."At that point, he goes outside because where he was standing, there was too many people right there for him to defend the other employees," Lt. Duhamell said.The armed employee circled the outside of the supermarket and got a clear view of Barreto inside."Opened the front door and sees the suspect. At that point, he saw the suspect point the gun at a mother and a child and at that point, fearing for them, he fired one shot, striking the suspect," said Lt. Duhamell. When police found Barreto in the store, he was in critical condition. He was transported to Wishard Hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly after arrival. Detectives talked with the employee who fired the shot and witnesses to determine what happened, but made no arrests. A release from IMPD Sunday night stated it appeared the shooting was justified.According to police, Barreto has been in and out of jail for years.Investigations showed his first arrest happened when he was only 14 years old. His arrests since then include armed robbery, auto theft and drug possession. Based on what happened at the supermarket Sunday, police now suspect him in other crimes."I am sure he has probably been involved in other robberies," Lt. Duhamell said. "He was wearing a ski mask and gloves."
Four men were arrested for housebreaking in Waverley on Monday, Johannesburg police said. Captain Phillip Maganedisa said the men were arrested around 15:00 after they were caught by a neighbour's camera while they were breaking into the house.
"The neighbour called the police after noticing them breaking into and entering the house," said Maganedisa. The men were facing charges of housebreaking and were expected to appear before the Johannesburg Magistrate's Court on Tuesday
man walking his dog in Terrell on Wednesday shot and critically wounded an armed 17-year-old robber, police said.The incident happened at about 10:20 p.m. in Ben Gill Park in the 100 block of Lions Club Lane where, police said, a group of teen robbers surrounded the man.According to investigators, when a boy in the group pulled out a gun, the man, a licensed concealed handgun owner, fired shots.The teen was apparently struck in the head and was listed in critical condition at Parkland Hospital. His weapon was recovered at the scene and later determined to be stolen during a separate offense in Terrell, according to police.Three other teen suspects fled the scene in a vehicle that was recovered in the 300 block of S. Park Street, police said.Police identified the teen gunman and one of the other suspects, and were working to ID the two remaining boys. The robbery victim was not injured.
Iyalode of Egbaland, Chief (Mrs.) Alaba Lawson, came within a whisker of death early Sunday morning as people suspected to be armed robbers stormed her residence in Abeokuta, leaving her security guard dead. Nigerian Tribune learnt that the robbers, numbering about 10, were said to have scaled the fence into her Quarry Road home around 1.00 a.m, armed to teeth. The robbers were said to have ordered the late security guard, identified simply as Yusuf, to take them to Mrs. Lawson's bedroom.
It was learnt that the resistance of the guard angered the robbers who stabbed him to death and fled when they saw mobile policemen arriving after a call by one of her children.Nigerian Tribune saw many sympathisers at the Lawson’s home. Blood could be seen in the generator house where the guard was killed.Narrating her ordeal, Chief (Mrs) Lawson said that she overheard the robbers ordering her late guard to take them to her employer's bedroom and that made her to alert one of her children to come to her aid.It was gathered that the son, on receiving his mum's distress call, drove to Ibara roundabout to inform the police and the robbers, on sighting the police, escaped through the fence. The state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Emmanuel Ayeni, got to the scene of the incident by 12.30 pm and ordered 24 hours surveillance in the area.
Two robbers have attacked a man in an Essex street, stealing £6,000 in cash. The 62-year-old victim was in Tinkler Side, Basildon, on Friday evening when he was approached from behind by two men and punched in the face. An Essex Police spokesman said the money, which was in a brown envelope, was taken in the robbery.
Police appealed for any witnesses, including a man wearing a red coat and glasses who chased the robbers, to contact officers. The robbers were white men but there was no other description.
Police are continuing their investigations into two attempted armed robberies took place in Gwent last week. The first incident happened on the afternoon of Wednesday, December 17. Officers were called to Risca post office when a man threatened the owners with a gun. The second incident took place at around 7.25pm on Thursday when a man in his 20s tried to rob the Londis store on Chepstow Road, Newport armed with a gun. A spokeswoman for Gwent Police said the incidents were not connected.
Four men forced four pizza shop employees into a supply closet and robbed the pizzeria Sunday night in Allentown, police said.The robbers told the employees not to leave the closet, and they complied until officers arrived about 45 minutes later, police Capt. Daryl Hendricks said. He said none of the employees was hurt.
Hendricks said about 10 p.m. or 10:15 p.m. the robbers entered Little Caesars Pizza, 1439 W. Allen St. One of the men had a semiautomatic rifle with an attached light, Hendricks said.He said the robbers corralled the employees and shoved them into the closet. One of the employees sent a text message from the closet and police responded about 11 p.m., found a rear door opened and let the employees out, Hendricks said.He said the robbers got away in an unknown direction, by an unknown means with an unknown amount of money.The robbers were all between the ages of 20 and 25, and most wore hoods, bandanas and blue jeans, Hendricks said.
Just after 11 p.m. last Thursday, two black males wearing ski masks entered the Plez-U with guns drawn and demanded money. The robbers then locked the two clerks on duty, Alta Carol and Rebecca Jenkins, in the store’s bathroom.“At this particular moment, we don’t have anything concrete to follow up on,” Roundy said.Witness statements and surveillance video have not been able to help authorities determine the method or direction of travel of the men after they left the store, Roundy said.
Bosque Farms police have arrested three men suspected in several bank robberies in the Albuquerque area over the past month.The FBI said two of the men were arrested after the MyBank in Los Lunas was robbed Monday. Officers spotted a car that fit the description of the getaway vehicle.Inside the vehicle were Daniel Alexander Duran, 34, and Marco Anthony Demarsh, 31, both of Albuquerque. FBI bank robbery specialists were able to link the men to what they believe is involvement in as many as five recent robberies in the Albuquerque area.Authorities also arrested Raymond David Trujillo in Grants, who is also believed to be connected to the recent robberies.
The FBI said all three men were in federal custody Tuesday.
Omar Trinidad, 19, Randolph Avenue, was charged with robbery, resisting arrest and drug possession, police reports said. The three victims said they were at Franklin Avenue and Mountain Road when two men walked up to them, demanded money, struck them and then ran off with the phones and the bags they were carrying, reports said.
Trinidad grabbed one of the victims, a 27-year-old student from Michigan, around the neck, turned him around and punched him in the face, reports said. The second robber then ordered the student's 26-year-old brother and 30-year old roommate, both of Sherman Avenue, to the ground, pistol-whipping one of them, reports said.
After the victims said they only had loose change, the robbers stole two cell phones and bags the victims were carrying, which contained two pairs of jeans, a couple wallets, three pairs of shoes and two stuffed animals, reports said.
Shaun Damon McArthur, 36, of 1855 Park St. in Harrisburg, appeared before District Judge Daniel Garber Tuesday morning and waived his right to a preliminary hearing. That means the 52 criminal offenses lodged against him are being forwarded to county court.Police said McArthur and Robert Lee, 44, of Harrisburg committed an armed, takeover-style bank robbery at the Peoples Bank, 1477 Carlisle Road, at 12:33 p.m. Oct. 24. The robbers ordered people to the floor at gunpoint, took a gun from a security guard doing business at the bank, and pointed their guns at tellers, police said.The alleged robbers then fled from pursuing officers after a York City patrolman spotted their Jeep on Route 30. During the chase, the people in the Jeep exchanged gunfire numerous times with the officers chasing them north on Interstate 83; no officers were shot, police said.The chase -- which exceeded speeds of 100 mph -- ended when the Jeep, driven by Lee, crashed into a woods off the Highland Park exit of Interstate 83.Lee was found dead at the wheel of a gunshot wound to the head, police said.
Three suspects, one carrying a black pistol, robbed the Wachovia Bank in Hyde Park after taking two bank employees prisoner at gunpoint.Tampa police are looking for three men, the first of whom took two bank employees prisoner at gunpoint as they entered the front door of the bank at 214 S Hyde Park Ave. Two other suspects followed, and they forced the bank employees to open a safe inside the bank.An alarm sounded, and the men fled without incident in a burgandy foor door vehicle.
Police described the first suspect as a 30-year-old, 6-foot-3-inch black man with a large build last seen wearing a dark colored cap, sunglasses, a white long-sleeved dress shirt, dark pants and white sneakers. He was armed with a black pistol.
Suspect two is a black 23-year-old man 5-foot-11-inches tall, clean shaven, last seen wearing a dark cap, sunglasses, a dark sweatshirt, blue jeans and dark sneakers. The third suspect is about 18 years old, black, 5-foot-7-inches tall, with a goatee, who was last wearing a dark ski-cap, a burgandy dress shirt, dark pants and tan boots carrying a dark colored backpack.
Five-year-old boy was shot and injured by robbers on the run in Booysens on Wednesday, Johannesburg police said. Superintendent Eugene Opperman said the boy was hit in the head at the Southdale shopping centre around 10:00 when four armed robbers fired shots when they were confronted by security guards. "The four men earlier robbed a cash-in-transit vehicle in Jasper, however they abandoned the money after they were chased by community members. "While they were running away they entered the mall and they were confronted by security guards before they started shooting," said Opperman. The boy was seriously injured and was taken to the Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital. One of the men was caught and arrested. The 30-year-old man faces charges of attempted murder.
four Milwaukee-area Radio Shack stores have been targeted by armed robbers within the last two months, area police say.At least four Milwaukee-area Radio Shack stores have been targeted by armed robbers within the last two months, area police say.
The most recent robbery occurred Sunday night in Wauwatosa, and shots were fired in that incident. Radio Shack robberies also have taken place in Glendale and Milwaukee.
This is the face of a gunman thought to be behind five armed robberies in as many days. The robber, described by police as opportunistic but dangerous, is still on the loose after raiding two buses, a taxi, a bookmakers and a man in a supermarket car park. Detectives believe the gunman’s spree began last Wednesday when he stole £120 from an Arriva bus in Wheatley at gunpoint. Hours later a gunman attacked the driver of an Oxford Tube bus in London Road, Headington, and stole cash. On Thursday, a Royal Cars taxi booked for Borrowmead Road, in Marston, was attacked and robbed by a man armed with a chain and gun. The gunman struck again on Saturday, stealing cash from Ladbrokes bookmakers, in Headington, and holding a man at gunpoint in Diamond Place car park, Summertown, on Sunday night before taking cash and his victim’s car. Det Insp Simon Morton said: “Money is the motive for these robberies but on each occasion the amount of stolen has been minimal because bus drivers and taxi drivers don’t carry much cash for exactly this reason. This e-fit is of the man who robbed the bus in Wheatley and I believe this robbery could be linked to the others but I’m keen keeping an open mind and investigating every avenue. “I believe the robber is local and an opportunist and I would like to take this opportunity to ask the public to remain vigilant and contact the police if they see anyone acting suspiciously.” Raids at an Esso petrol station in Thame on Friday, and Radio Taxis in Magdalen Road, Oxford, on Monday December 1, where one of the robbers had a handgun, are not currently believed to be linked but police are keeping an open mind. Det Chief Insp Colin Paine, head of priority crime, said: “It is not clear if the firearm is genuine or imitation as no shots have been fired but we are treating it as real. I would consider this person therefore to be dangerous.”
The gunman is described as Asian or white, in his early to mid 30s, between 5ft 10in and 6ft tall, with a slim build and may have brown eyes.
A team of 16 detectives is working on the case and officers said they are open to the possibility there may be two armed robbers.
Houston police cold case investigators say they have identified one of the suspects in a 1992 home invasion robbery that led to the death of an elderly woman, The Houston Chronicle reports. Police are asking for help from the public in finding and arresting Bobby Miller, who was 15 when the crime was committed in August 1992.
Investigators say he and another person forced their way into Louvenia Wilson's house, tied her up with duct tape and telephone cord and stole several hundred dollars, The Chronicle reported. She lay on a bathroom floor for about three days until she was found, police said. Ms. Wilson was hospitalized and died two weeks later. Mr. Miller faces a murder charge in the case. The other person involved in the robbery has not been identified.
Police are seeking a bank robber who made a "significant threat" to a bank teller at a drive-through window Monday afternoon and drove away with an undisclosed amount of money.Employees of the Bank of America branch on West Main Street reported the robbery at 1:44 p.m. They said a man in a car showed a threatening note to a teller at the window, implying he had a weapon and would hurt workers if his demand was not met, police said.Witnesses described the robber as in his 30s or 40s and operating a smaller, blue, four-door vehicle.City police said they didn't think this robbery was related to one Friday at the Banknorth branch on Main Street. Police are working with the FBI on both investigations.
Investigators say since mid November, robbers have hit at least eight pizza parlors and other stores. Live 5 News spoke with a Domino's Pizza employee who was robbed after closing up one night last week."I'm still kind of shaken up. I still shake a lot," she said.She told us one of two masked men forced his way in. He wasn't interested in pizza dough. He wanted cash dough."the sound of his voice, I think was very scary for me. He really meant business. He wasn't there to play," the still frightened employee recalled. "Because he was behind me, I didn't know if that gun was gonna go off.""I said if I don't do everything, exactly like he wants me to, then he could just shoot me and I wouldn't even know it was coming. It was scary."
After getting his cash, the robber had one more order and it wasn't for pizza.
"When he got to the front door, he turned around and and I just held my hands like this, what do I do now?" she said. "And he looked at me and said, lock yourself up in the cooler." The robbers apparently don't mind making a repeat performance. Police say me the Domino's on Dorchester Road has been hit at least twice, putting pizza workers on edge.But it's not just pizza parlors being hit. Police say the bandits have also targeted a mattress shop, and a couple of dollar stores.So far a total of 15 businesses have been hit. Eight of them are in unincorporated Charleston County, four are in the city of Charleston, and three are in the city of North Charleston.Fortunately, so far, the robbers haven't turned violent."I hope and pray they don't hurt anybody," the Domino's employee said.
Rebecca Robertson, one of the “Housewife Bandits,” was back in court Monday afternoon.Rebecca Robertson, 39, and Melanie Clark, 34, are accused of going on shopping sprees using stolen credit cards, debit cards, and checks.Clark has been charged with taking and using stolen credit cards.Robertson has a list of charges including grand larceny, conspiracy, and identity theft.Both women have waived their rights to preliminary hearings. Robertson took a plea deal Monday. She pleaded guilty to all six charges she faced, including grand larceny, conspiracy and identity theft.Robertson was sentenced to ten years in the custody of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections.
Three suspected jeep robbers were killed in a shootout with police during a predawn encounter near the Santo Domingo Church in Quezon City Tuesday.Radio dzBB reported that the three, who were not immediately identified, were described as 25 to 30 years old, and were clad in T-shirts, denim shorts and sandals.The incident marred an otherwise "peaceful" start to the series of dawn masses leading to Christmas Day.
Police said the robbers had just victimized passengers of a jeep along Quezon Avenue when police guarding the Santo Domingo Church chanced on them.While the suspects tried to flee, they were cornered near the corner of Biak na Bato and Florentino Streets in Quezon City, and allegedly fired at police.Recovered from the three were two cal-.38 revolvers and one grenade.
Officials identified the suspect Monday as 32-year-old Joshua A. Turnidge of Salem. The Marion County prosecutor's office says he was arrested Sunday after police released surveillance photos of him.The announcement didn't say what led officers to Turnidge but said it wasn't the direct result of a tip.The explosion at a West Coast Bank branch Friday in Woodburn killed two police officers and critically injured the town's police chief.Court officials didn't know Monday whether Turnidge had an attorney. He is to be arraigned Tuesday in Marion County court in Salem. Police arrested a suspect late Sunday in the Oregon bank bombing that killed two officers and critically injured a police chief, authorities said.Sheriff Russ Isham of Marion County declined to release the suspect's name, saying it would jeopardize the integrity of the investigation and the safety of officers still working the case."We do believe the person responsible for the bombing is in custody," Deputy District Attorney Courtland Geyer said late Sunday.The suspect was arrested in Salem, located just south of Woodburn, the small city south of Portland where Friday's bombing occurred.Officers made the arrest shortly after Sheriff Russ Isham of Marion County released surveillance photos of a "person of interest." Geyer would not say if a tip led to the arrest.He also wouldn't disclose if the man in the photos, apparently taken with a security camera, is the same person in custody.Isham would not release the precise location where the arrest took place, and said the suspect's name likely wouldn't be released until Monday afternoon."I'm really proud of those who tirelessly worked to get us to this point and am humbled by the community's support," Isham said. "We know there is still a lot of hard work ahead of us, but this development will help bring relief to the local community and the officer's families."Earlier Sunday, Isham said cell phones and items that might have been used to make the Woodburn bomb were bought in the central Oregon city of Bend last month. Authorities would not elaborate on how cell phones might have been used. Bombers often use cell phone signals to remotely detonate explosives.Geyer said revealing anything about the "manner and build" of the bomb would hurt the investigation.The manager of a Woodburn branch of West Coast Bank found the device Friday after a call about a bomb threat to a nearby Wells Fargo bank branch that turned up a harmless device. The bomb was found outside, but the officers took the bomb into the bank, where it exploded.Woodburn Police Chief Scott Russell remained in critical condition Sunday at a Portland hospital as a result of the blast that killed Woodburn police Capt. Tom Tennant and Oregon State Police Senior Trooper William Hakim.
Rebels and the Bandidos is being linked to as many as 13 shootings on Sydney streets in just over two weeks.A new elite police unit, originally set up to investigate the night-time shooting of a gang member in Seven Hills last month, is widening its net to examine the outbreak of violence among the outlaw gangs.Codenamed Highcro and made up of gangs squad officers, the strikeforce will examine the series of shootings in western Sydney.On November 28, a 25-year-old was shot several times in the head and chest while a passenger in a car driving on the Prospect Highway. The car was hit by about 19 bullets fired from at least two high-powered rifles. He was taken to hospital in a critical condition.The Highcro detectives are using that incident as a springboard to look at 12 other shootings they believe may be linked to the warring bikie gangs, who have a history of enmity that often boils over into street warfare.A prominent Bandido was murdered in Melbourne in October and rumours of a planned "hit" marred the Friday extradition hearing in New Zealand of a Rebel member accused of a vicious bashing in Queensland last year.Only four days after the Seven Hills shooting, a Gypsy Joker was shot and knocked from his bike as he rode on the Great Western Highway before midnight.In the early hours of the same day, December 2, a tattoo parlour in Belmore and a Bass Hill house were fired at. No one was injured in either shooting. Since then there have been nine shootings across Sydney's west.The NSW violence comes on the back of a flare-up between the two gangs in Victoria. On October 22, a Bandidos enforcer, 51-year-old Ross Brand, was shot dead outside the gang's Geelong clubhouse.Two brothers, both members of the Rebels, have been charged with his murder.The continuing gang violence has also led to high security during an extradition hearing for New Zealander and Rebel member Peter Douglas Rauhina, 37.The first Sydney arrests in relation to the feud occurred on Wednesday night, when police pulled over four men in a Holden Commodore for a routine check and discovered two semi-automatic rifles, one loaded.Half an hour before the road stop, a house in Sadlier, believed to be linked to the Rebels, had been shot at. The four men, aged 21 to 46, are understood to be Bandidos associates.
Loss adjusters working for insurers Lloyd's of London said that the maximum reward would go to "the first person who can provide information leading to the recovery" of the gems.Four gunmen - three dressed in drag - made off with sacks of gems, watches and necklaces in a dusk raid last Thursday on the luxury Harry Winston boutique, near the Champs-Elysées.The Robbery, which was over in 15 minutes without a shot being fired, came a year after another smaller multi-million-pound robbery at the same store. A reward was also offered then, but to no avail.Police said they were dealing with "major professionals" who had meticulously planned their raid, even knowing the first names of some of the staff and making a bee-line for hidden safety boxes.Investigators have been studying film from security cameras within the shop and on the fashionable Avenue Montaigne outside, but have few clues due to the thieves' disguises. Witnesses were not even able to say in which direction the robbers escaped.The four men spoke French with east European accents.Investigators have suggested that the stolen jewels - once dismantled - could easily be sold in eastern Europe, described as a "new El Dorado for traffickers," although not at market prices.Harry Winston has sold jewels to some of the biggest names in showbiz over the decades, from Jennifer Lopez to Marilyn Monroe - who mentioned the boutique by name in the song Diamonds are a Girls Best Friend.Other famous customers in Paris have included the Shah of Iran and Jackie Kennedy.
"I woke up to two men standing over me with ski masks and guns," Brian Boyce said.
The intruders tied him up, slipped a nylon bag over his head and ransacked his home, said Boyce, 29.They used a stun gun to zap Boyce in the shoulder and leg, he said.
Now, Snohomish County sheriff's deputies are looking for the two armed men who barged into the Lynnwood-area home.Just after 11 a.m. the robbers entered the home in the 16600 block of 48th Avenue W., Snohomish County sheriff's Lt. Steve Dittoe said.The two men demanded cash and access to a home safe, Dittoe said.
Boyce said he doesn't have a safe."I felt helpless," he said. "They wanted this thing from me and there was no thing here."The robbers took electronics and other valuables from Boyce's home, he said. They also fled in one of his cars, a red Toyota Celica with a Washington license plate of either 524 KZI or 982 XHD.
Bank robberies are up more than 50 percent in Nassau County this year, an increase authorities are attributing to a handful of serial robbers who have stolen money from multiple banks, including four heroin users stealing to pay for their costly habit.In New York City, robberies also are up more than 50 percent, a spike authorities attribute to banks having longer hours and more customer-friendly features, such as no Plexiglas or barriers.While an ailing economy may be sparking the rise, Nassau police are linking 28 of the 74 bank robberies so far this year to four heroin users. The drug's use has been a growing problem in a county where teenagers have died from heroin overdoses in record numbers and lawmakers have proposed legislation to combat the problem."There is definitely a recognizable increase in heroin use among our bank robbers," said Det. Sgt. John Giambrone, commander of the Nassau police robbery squad. "Several serial bank robbers were doing it to support their drug habits."
Man who robbed a woman in New Kingston today is now in hospital under police guard after he was shot by a security guard. The other two men are in police custody.
Their identities have not been released, as the men are to be placed on an identification parade. The police say shortly after 11 this morning a woman left a bank in New Kingston and was about to enter her car when a man approached her. The man grabbed a large envelope from the woman and ran towards a motorbike where his accomplices were waiting. Security guards from the bank reportedly chased the robber. It’s further reported that the man pulled a firearm and was shot and injured by the guard. One of the injured man’s accomplices then reportedly grabbed the envelope and ran. Members of a police team who were near by gave chase and later retrieved the envelope after the robber fell. The third man escaped but was held later by another police team. The police say the envelope contained lodgment books and other bank documents. In the meantime, Deputy Superintendent McAuthur Sutherland is imploring people transacting business during the upcoming festive season to be extremely careful. Persons must be more aware of their surroundings and should always be vigilant. The police will be increasing their presence in highly commercial areas in an effort to reduce robberies and theft during the Christmas season, he added.
Police in Battle Creek are investigating an armed robbery that occurred on Tuesday night.It happened around 8 p.m. In the 1500 block of Northeast Capital Avenue.Police say that a 29-year-old woman had been walking to her car in a parking lot when she was approached by two men who threatened her with a handgun.The woman gave the men her wallet, which contained $26.Police searched the area with a K9 unit, but didn't find anything.Police are now looking for the two men.
Armed robbers entered a home, tasered the owner, tied him up and took off in his car Tuesday morning. The robbery happened at about 11 a.m. the 16600 block of 48th Avenue West, a residential area just north of Lynnwood. Brian Boyce was asleep on his couch when the men walked in. He had left the door unlocked because he had been out of the house earlier in the morning. "Next thing I know, I woke up to two guys with ski masks on with guns pointed at me,” said Boyce. He says the men demanded to know where the safe was. The robbers bound his hands and feet with plastic zip ties and put a bag over his head. The pair ransacked the place, but not before they pulled out a taser and zapped Boyce twice on the back. Two small marks are left where the electrodes burned him. "I was starting to cry and I was ready to just give up. I was sobbing and thought it was over,” said Boyce. The robbers took Boyce’s computer, some tools and then grabbed the keys to his red Toyota Celica and took off. Once he was able to free himself, Boyce called police. By the time they arrived, the robbers were gone. So is Boyce’s sense of security. "They stole that from me. I don't feel safe here no more,” said Boyce. The car police are looking for is a red 1990 Toyota Celica. Boyce buys and sells cars and says the Celica may have one or two license plate numbers, either 524KZI or 982XHD. Police do not believe this is related to another home invasion robbery last week in the Snohomish area.
Police release the name of a man suspected of robbing a bank over the weekend.
It happened at the IBC Bank in south Tulsa on Saturday.Police say Tawaun Scott walked into the bank and demanded cash.Witnesses told police he made his get away in a white Ford Taurus.Investigators believe the same man robbed another IBC Bank earlier this year.
Two of four robbers of an Internet cafe, one of them a minor, were arrested in their hideout in Quezon City before dawn Wednesday, a radio report said.Radio dzBB's Roland Bola reported that Mark Anthony Santos, 20, and his 17-year-old companion, were hiding in a house in Holy Cross in Novaliches when arrested.Police said the two had taken part in robbing an Internet shop in Caloocan City hours earlier, taking P20,000 cash, three computer units and a PlayStation-2 console.Annabelle Ilarde, owner of the Internet shop, identified the two as among the robbers.But police said that while they recovered from the two a cal-.38 revolver, they failed to get the missing P20,000
Two masked and machete-wielding men who barged into a club in Sydney, Australia, couldn’t have picked a worse night for their robbery — a monthly meeting of bikers.
About 50 burly bikers fought back with tables and chairs — pretty much anything that wasn’t bolted down. One would-be robber was tied up; the other in the hospital.Police arrested both.“These guys were absolutely dumb as bricks,” Jerry Vancornewal, leader of the bikers, told CNN Thursday. “I can’t believe they saw all the bikes parked up front and they were so stupid that they walked past in.”Vancornewal and his buddies were at the Regents Park Sporting and Community Club in Sydney when the two men wearing ski masks stormed in Wednesday night. They yelled at patrons to drop to the floor as they emptied cash registers at the bar.
Hearing the commotion from an adjacent room, Vancornewal and his pals with the Southern Cross Cruiser motorcycle club stomped through to the bar area to intervene.
“They (the robbers) thought they had the upper advantage with their knives and their machetes,” Jim Webb, night supervisor of the club, told CNN. “They didn’t expect to run into a bunch of guys carrying chairs and tables.”One of the would-be robbers crashed through a plate-glass door and jumped off a balcony.“All he had to do was push the button and it automatically opened,” Webb quipped.New South Wales police said they arrested the 20-year-old man a short distance away.The second man made a break for it through the club’s service entrance, but the bikers tackled him near a neighbor’s fence.“We just grabbed him, crash-tackled him to the ground, hogtied him with electrical wire and left him for the cops,” Vancornewal said.Police confirmed in a statement that club patrons subdued the second man until officers arrived, but did not provide additional details. The suspect turned out to be a 16-year-old boy.
Both would-be robbers were charged with attempted armed robbery and “face disguised with intent to commit indictable offense,” police said.
A third person, who was waiting in a getaway car, took off when the bikers threw pieces of furniture at him, Webb said. Police have not located him.
The Regents Park Sporting and Community Club is a place where locals come to enjoy drinks and take part in various games: cricket, soccer, lawn bowling. The biking enthusiasts meet there once a month to plan rides and other club activities.
In the last year or so, criminals have struck the club about 10 times, Webb said. And Wednesday night’s incident, while unusual, wasn’t the most memorable.
“We have these old bingo players and they are really serious about their games,” Webb explained. “They do not like to be interrupted.”When robbers barged in one evening and announced that they were holding up the place, the players turned around and testily told them to be quiet.
“They were making it difficult for the players to hear the numbers being called,” Webb said.
Catawba County grocer took the law into his own hands when two people allegedly tried breaking into his store early Saturday morning. About 3 a.m., two robbers broke into the Randy Willis Grocery in Vale. Willis was in the store at the time and shot both would-be robbers. One person died at the scene, another was taken to the hospital with a gunshot wound to his shoulder.As of right now, Willis has not been charged with anything. The case will be presented to the Catawba County District Attorney. Charges are currently pending for Arnold Eugene Ray Jr. He could face charges of breaking and entering, robbery with a dangerous weapon and kidnapping.
A female has also been arrested in this case. Rebecca Jean Holman has been charged with breaking and entering. She allegedly dropped off the suspects at the store. Her bond has been set at $10,000. As of noon Sunday, the sheriff had not identified the deceased or reported new charges in the case.
Sacramento Police Department
Sacramento police are asking for help identifying two masked robbers who robbed a AM/PM at 2933 65th St. on Nov. 24. This is a photo of one of the suspects.
Sacramento police asked for help Sunday in identifying two masked men responsible for an armed robbery last month. They are hoping people may recognize the clothing worn by the robbers.On Nov. 24, a masked man went into the AM/PM Mini-Mart at 2933 65th St. with a handgun. He ordered the clerk to the ground then dragged him by his feet into the back office. While in the back office, a second masked man came into the store, walked over to the cash register and removed cash from the drawer, according to a press release from the Sacramento Police Department.Police said both men left from the back door and drove off in a newer black, possibly four-door import sedan. Both robbers were described as men of average height and weight. The first man, who had a black handgun, wore a dark-colored ski mask, gray hooded sweatshirt, white gloves, light-colored pants and dark shoes, police said.The second man wore a black ski mask, a black hooded jacket, black gloves, green camouflage pants and dark colored shoes, police said.
Less than three days after a bloody encounter in Parañaque City, police shot dead in northern Metro Manila early Monday two more suspected members of a robbery gang linked to a series of violent robberies in past months.
Despite advances made against a robbery gang last week, police on Monday warned of more possible robberies as many gang members are still on the loose.In a radio interview, National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) chief Director Leopoldo Bataoil said despite the killing of members of a robbery gang in two incidents in the last four days, they have not let down their guard against remnants of the gangs.
Bataoil said police are now focusing on intelligence work against robbery groups.
"Yan ang ating projection ... Kaya nga ito todo ang ating intelligence operations at saka pag-raid sa safehouses nila, pag-monitor at pag-follow-up at pursuit operation sa remnants (That is ourprojection. That is why we have intensified intelligence operations and raids on safe houses)," Bataoil said in an interview on dwIZ radio, when asked if the attempted robberies may escalate.
On Friday night, police killed members of a robbery gang that they said planned to strike in Parañaque City. However, five civilians were also killed in the incident.At least two more suspected robbers were shot dead in a predawn encounter in northern Metro Manila Monday.Bataoil said the gang had been behind a series of violent robberies, including the one at Veterans Bank in the University of the Philippines in Quezon City."Let us not take this very lightly, mabigaat ang mga ito (Let's not take this lightly. These are serious criminals)," Bataoil said.
O.J. Simpson's rambling apology in a Las Vegas courtroom was the last-ditch bid for leniency by a "monster," the family of Ron Goldman said Monday."I don't believe for one single second he has an ounce of remorse in his body," Fred Goldman said on NBC's "Today." "He's never apologized for anything that he's horribly done in his life."Goldman said Simpson's emotional, five-minute plea Friday over his confrontation last year with sports memorabilia dealers was that of "a monster who was simply trying to find a way to get the judge to give him a better deal."Simpson was sentenced to 9 to 33 years in prison on 12 charges, including kidnapping and armed robbery, in the confrontation over collectibles that the former football star insisted were stolen from him.Simpson's Oct. 3 conviction with a co-defendant in the Las Vegas case came 13 years to the day after he was cleared in the slaying of Ron Goldman and Simpson's ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson.In a 1997 civil trial, Simpson was found liable for the deaths and ordered to pay a $33.5 million judgment to the victims' families.Ron Goldman's sister, Kim Goldman, called Simpson's Las Vegas sentencing a "good day for us. ... It's been a long time coming."
Two men suspected in a string of robberies at local casinos were in custody Sunday, according to a sheriff's lieutenant. Jonathan Atkins, 21, and Raymond Little, 18, are allegedly followed people who had won money as they were leaving casinos to head home and then robbed them. They were swarmed by sheriff's deputies about 1 a.m. Saturday at a gas station at Western and Fountain avenues in Hollywood. They were in a car with North Carolina license plates, police said. The two were wanted in connection with a follow-home robbery last week in Orange County, in which they allegedly followed a man from the Commerce Casino to his Lake Forrest home and robbed him at gunpoint. Police believe the duo have committed several other similar crimes. Each one is being held in lieu of $100,000 bail.
Ex-teller pleads guilty to aiding bank robbers: A former head bank teller pleaded guilty Thursday to aiding and abetting bank robbers who threatened her family if she did not help with the heist.Elizabeth Tarke, 41, of Olney, faces 10 years in prison. Authorities said Tarke, the head bank teller at the Wheaton branch of BB&T, was home when someone walked up to her 9-year-old daughter and pointed a gun to her head. She later received a letter threatening to harm her daughter and family if Tarke didn’t cooperate in a robbery of the bank the following month. On Jan. 9, 2008, Tarke let a man posing as armored truck guard into the bank where he walked off with $547,500 in cash.
Armed robbers wearing women's wigs and clothing made off with diamond rings, gem-studded bracelets and other jewelry worth $108 million from a Harry Winston boutique in Paris, in one of the world's largest jewel heists.As Christmas shoppers strolled outside, the gunmen forced store employees to strip rings, necklaces and earrings from window displays and pull more out of safes, Isabelle Montagne, spokeswoman for the Paris prosecutor's office, said Friday.The brazen robbery early Thursday evening took place in the presence of security guards and security cameras in one of Paris' toniest shopping locales, just steps away from the tourist-filled Champs-Elysees. Besides Harry Winston, Nina Ricci, Gucci, Chanel and Dior are among the fashion houses with boutiques on the Avenue Montaigne.The robbers threatened the 15 employees with handguns and hit some on the head, according to a police official who cannot be identified under agency policy. The robbers spoke a foreign language at times and appeared to know employees' names, the official said.Montagne said there was only one client in the store at the time, and no one was injured and no weapons were fired. She called the incident "very well-organized," and said three of the four gunmen were dressed as women and wore wigs.Investigators seized the store's surveillance tapes and police said one group under suspicion was the so-called "Pink Panthers," a ring of jewel thieves mostly from the former Yugoslavia. The international police agency Interpol has blamed the group for jewel thefts in 19 countries in Europe, Asia and the Persian Gulf worth more than $150 million over the past 10 years.Paris' Harry Winston boutique was targeted in a similar heist last year, when three thieves made off with $28.4 million worth of jewels after forcing employees to open safes. They were never caught.French police called Thursday's robbery one of the world's costliest jewel thefts. Five years ago, robbers plundered 123 maximum-security vaults in Antwerp, Belgium, stealing $100 million worth of diamonds in what was then considered the biggest jewel theft.The Paris robbers chose one of the world's most glamorous targets: Harry Winston jewels have adorned Queen Elizabeth, Elizabeth Taylor, Madonna and numerous Hollywood celebrities. The jeweler is famous for its one-of-a-kind diamond-studded pendants, opulent chandelier earrings and colored diamonds in vivid shades of yellow, blue and pink."We are cooperating with the authorities in their investigation. Our first concern is the well-being of our employees," New York-based Harry Winston said. Rhonda Barnat, a spokeswoman for the company, did not provide further details.The boutique was closed Friday, and three of its five display windows stood empty of their usual stunning jewelry. Vendors at the nearby Louis Vuitton and Max Mara boutiques said they did not notice anything unusual Thursday — until police sirens wailed.Harry Winston declared to insurers that the stolen goods were worth $108 million (euro85 million), the Paris prosecutor's office said.Geoff Field, CEO of the British Jewelers' Association, called it a "pretty sensational" robbery, but added: "There are well-known gangs around looking to target high-value diamonds."He stressed the stolen jewels would be difficult to sell "through any legitimate channels.""They will undoubtedly be certified," he said, adding: "There will be a record of their quality, their cut, their weight, their color, and they will be identifiable."
Passers-by at the Harry Winston store wondered the same thing Friday.
"How do you fence it? How do you get rid of it?" asked tourist Richard Conacher, a 39-year-old hotelier from Melbourne, Australia. "You'd have to think they were famous pieces."A half-century ago, company founder Harry Winston donated the Hope Diamond — the world's largest blue diamond and famed for the bad luck that it brought its owners — to the Smithsonian Institution. Thursday's robbery comes as a security monitoring group for the French jewelry industry has reported a 20 percent rise in armed robberies over last year, with 132 taking place through November.Armed robbers stole gems worth 85 million euros ($108 million) from luxury jewelers in the heart of Paris, during a raid described by French media Friday as the most lucrative heist in France's history.The Harry Winston chain, long a favorite among the world's rich and famous, once provided jewels to the Shah of Iran for his wedding and to Richard Burton for his wife Elizabeth Taylor.A spokeswoman at the Paris prosecutors' office said the Harry Winston store, located just off the Champs Elysees on an avenue of luxury outlets, had declared 85 million euros' worth of losses to its insurers after Thursday's hold-up.
"These are experienced bandits. They got through the main door without drawing attention to themselves. In less than 20 minutes they got up to the first floor, emptied the safes and the display cases and left through the door," she said.
A police spokesman said the gang of four men, one or two of them disguised as women, threatened customers and pistol-whipped some of the staff. They appeared very well-prepared."Apparently they knew the names of several of the staff," the spokesman said.The raid came a year almost to the day after the same store was attacked by robbers who forced staff to empty its safes, taking at least $16 million worth of jewels.Experts at the prosecutors' office said the jewels and luxury watches stolen Thursday could not be sold in their present form as they would be too easily recognized. They said organized crime networks capable of finding buyers for the gems outside of France were likely to be involved in the heist.The firm shows on its website a gem bought by the late shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis to present to former U.S. first lady Jacqueline Kennedy as an engagement ring.It also has more recent pictures of movie actresses Gwyneth Paltrow, Hilary Swank and Scarlett Johansson wearing its jewels.The French celebrity press reported earlier this year that President Nicolas Sarkozy gave a Harry Winston ring to model-turned-popstar Carla Bruni for their engagement, though the information has not been officially confirmed.
Police constable was shot dead and his colleague was injured during a shoot out between police and robbers outside a supermarket in Harare, Khayelitsha on Sunday.
The police were called out to a robbery in progress at Score supermarket at about 6.15am and arrived as the robbers were leaving the shop.A shoot-out ensued during which Constable Tueiho Thokolo was shot and killed and his colleague, a reservist-constable, was shot in his upper left leg, said police spokesperson Senior Superintendent Billy Jones.The reservist-constable is currently in a serious but stable condition in a hospital, while particulars of his dead colleague will be released later, said JonesOne of the robbers was shot in the head during the shoot out and died at the scene.A 9mm firearm was found in his possession and confiscated. Two other suspects fled the scene with R6 000 and a cellphone and are still at large.
Sioux Falls police are looking for three suspects in connection with a burglary that sent two residents to the hospital with minor gunshot injuries.It happened just after 2 a.m. Monday in the central part of town.The man who called 911 said three men wearing masks and bandanas and carrying at least two handguns broke into the apartment and he was hit in the foot when one of the guns went off.A female resident received a graze wound to the foot.The resident said the intruders took several electronics items before leaving.
Two men suspected of being involved in a recent rash of shootings and robberies at several South Florida Dunkin' Donuts shops will be charged with first-degree murder after one of their victims died in the hospital, the Broward Sheriff's Office said today.Tharod Bell, 21, of Fort Lauderdale, and James Herard, 19, of Lauderhill, are accused in the Nov. 27 shooting of Kiem Huynh, 56, of Fort Lauderdale, authorities said.Huynh, a customer, was shot in the back during a robbery of a Dunkin' Donuts store in Tamarac. He died Sunday.Four other people were wounded in a Nov. 26 attack on a Dunkin' Donuts in Delray Beach. three others are accused of robbing Dunkin' Donuts stores in Broward and Palm Beach counties: Jonathan Jackson, 23, of Lauderhill; Charles Faustin, 18, of Fort Lauderdale; and Calvin Weatherspoon, 20, of Lauderdale Lakes.All are being held without bond on armed robbery charges.In another development, police said the Nov. 14 shotgun death of a 39-year-old man in Lauderhill has been linked to the suspects.Eric Jean-Pierre, 39, was killed with a blast from a shotgun as he walked in the 2100 block of Northwest 55th Avenue on his way home from work, said police Capt. Rick Rocco.No other details were immediately available.The suspects are accused of also robbing a Dunkin' Donuts in Sunrise on Nov. 24 and a 7-Eleven store in Pompano Beach on Nov. 26, the Sheriff's Office said.
Five shotgun shells, dark-colored clothing, bandanas and victims' credit cards were found at the home of Jackson's girlfriend, according to court documents.Sheriff's detectives searched the home just hours after his Wednesday arrest, according to a search warrant made available today.One of his alleged accomplices told investigators that the shotgun shells could be found in the home, according to the search warrant.In addition, detectives videotaped Jackson talking about the shotgun shells when he was placed in an interview room with Weatherspoon, court records show.
"I should have gotten rid of the spent shells in the top dresser drawer," Jackson said on tape.
Armed robbers who raided homes and then posted videos on the internet of sports cars they had stolen have been jailed. The five members of Wythenshawe's Newall Green Crew gang were sentenced to a total of 24 years in jail after pleading guilty to numerous offences, including armed robbery and burglary. They targeted homes with high-powered cars parked outside during an eight-month crime spree. After threatening, beating and robbing the homeowners, they would then use the cars for other crimes, mostly robberies. The cars stolen included a Subaru Impreza, which was shown speeding around the Wythenshawe estate and pulling 'doughnuts' in a video posted on Youtube by one gang member. Also stolen between May 2007 and January this year by the gang were an Audi A4, Audi A3, a VW Golf and Seat Leon. Detective Constable Stephen Philips said: "These five men are repeat offenders who have shown a complete disregard for the law. "Between them they have targeted and terrified completely innocent members of the public. "Thanks to a lot of hard work by officers at the burglary unit we were able to identify the offenders as key players in a gang who prided themselves on their criminal background. "I am pleased they are all now starting considerable prison sentences. The streets will certainly be safer with them behind bars." The gang were sentenced at Manchester Crown Court on Friday (28/11/08). Michael O'Reilly, 20, of Barnwood Road, Newall Green, pleaded guilty to two counts of armed robbery and one count of burglary. He was jailed for seven years.
Jonathan Charles Costello, 22, of Foxlair Road, Poundswick, pleaded guilty to four counts of burglary at an earlier hearing and was sentenced to five years.
Matthew Sam Hackland, 21, of Greenbrow Road, Newall Green, pleaded guilty to three counts of burglary at an earlier hearing and has been sentenced to four years.
Derek Cotterill, 23, of St George's Court, Eccles, Salford, admitted two counts of burglary at an earlier hearing. He was jailed for three years.
Damien Lee Dean, 24, of Kennett Road, Newall Green pleaded guilty to two counts of burglary and handling stolen goods at an earlier hearing and was sentenced to five years. Along with the five gang members, Paul Costello, 20, of Old Moat Lane, Withington, admitted handling stolen goods and going equipped for burglary at an earlier hearing and was jailed for nine months.
Jose Echeverria, 45, of suburban West Palm Beach was walking toward his house in the 2600 block of Hiawatha Avenue about 11 p.m. Saturday when two or three men attacked him, hitting him on the head several times and robbing him of his cellphone, he told the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office.Echeverria, who continued home and waited about an hour before calling authorities, was taken to St. Mary's Medical Center, where he remained today in critical condition, according to a sheriff's statement circulated this afternoon. Sheriff's detectives weren't able to interview Echeverria.
"Initial information indicated the victim may have been shot," the statement said. "Investigation is still ongoing to determine if the victim was in fact shot."
Macon police are investigating a home invasion, after three men showed up at an apartment on Woodward Avenue with handguns and a rifle late Saturday night. The victims were in their apartment with several friends when the men showed up wearing dark clothing and ski masks.One of the suspects fired a shot into the wall, then they robbed everyone in the home. In an ironic twist, as the robbers left they told the people in the apartment to "have a Merry Christmas" before they ran away.
fugitive who slipped out of a northern Michigan jail five days ago was back in custody Sunday, arrested without incident by police during a traffic stop. Michigan State Police said Sunday that the Romulus Police Department had arrested Jonathan Good, 36, about noon driving a vehicle stolen out of Mecosta County several hours earlier. "There had been a statewide bulletin put out on the vehicle which was spotted by Romulus officers," said Sgt Joe Cairnduff of the Reed City state police post. "Officers will be picking him up and bringing him back to jail." Good, who escaped from the Mecosta County Jail Wednesday, prompted a house-by-house search in a Big Rapids neighborhood he was believed hiding out. Good had been held on 31 counts, including attempted murder, armed robbery and assault with intent to commit murder. All the offenses happened after Good was paroled in 2006 after serving a jail sentence for second-degree murder and armed robbery.
Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Craig Strong shot at three men suspected of robbing his home at 7:15 p.m. today on the 1700 block of Seminole in Detroit’s Indian Village, police said.Strong came home to find the men inside his house. He shot at them with his own gun and chased them outside. Police said it’s unclear if he hit any of the men. They ran off. A television was left on Strong’s lawn and nothing else was missing from the house, police said.It was not immediately known if Strong’s weapon is registered, police said.
Police on Saturday were looking for two men who robbed a Latin grocery store in Olathe.The crime occurred about 10:50 a.m. Friday at the Latino Y Punto, 909 S. Parker St.The victim told police that one robber entered the store with a handgun and demanded money. He took an unspecified amount and fled north on Parker in a mint-colored Ford Expedition driven by an accomplice, police said.
Group of armed men wearing masks stormed into a Pleasant Hill home on Thanksgiving, and kept a family at gunpoint while they committed a robbery, police said.
It happened around 11 p.m. on Phylis Drive. The family, a woman and her 3 sons, had just finished watching a movie when the robbers broke in. The gunmen punched one family member in the face, and unloaded their bullets to prove the guns were loaded.
The robbers forced all four to the ground, and then proceeded to take their pants, cell phones, wallets and prescription medication. Police tried to track down the robbers with a dog, but lost their scent after 2 blocks. It is still unsure if the robbery was random, or if the attackers knew the victims.
UGANDA’S police warned male bar-goers to keep their noses clean after a probe found a gang of robbers had been using women with chloroform smeared on their chests to knock their victims unconscious.“They apply this chemical to their chest. We have found victims in an unconscious state,” Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID) spokesman Fred Enanga said.“You find the person stripped totally naked and everything is taken from him,” he said.“And the victim doesn’t remember anything. He just remembers being in the act of romancing.”He called on men, particularly travelling businessmen who tend to carry a lot of cash, to take caution.“It’s a serious situation and people have to be aware
