Three Robberies

From: "UHSD Email List" <info@upperhurstville.com>
Subject: Three Robberies
Date: Thu Nov 3 12:35:32 2016

Source: Uptown Messenger
Remember to use the patrol when getting home at night (504.451.1614)

Two separate robberies were reported within minutes of one another Thursday night a few blocks apart on Prytania Street and St. Charles Avenue, followed by a third case hours later on Willow Street, New Orleans police said.

In the first case, at 9:38 p.m., the victim had just parked on Joseph Street when a man quickly appeared from around the corner of Prytania and confronted him with a gun, demanding his wallet and keys, the victim said afterward.

“He tried to steal my car, but it’s a stick shift and he couldn’t start it,” the victim said. 

While the gunman struggled with the manual transmission, the victim escaped to call police, and they arrived within “seconds,” he said. He said the robbery happened so quickly that he wasn’t able to get a good look at his attacker. 

“He told me if I looked at him, he’d shoot me,” the victim said. “As soon as he put the gun in my face, I looked away.” 

A neighbor said she was sitting on her porch when she saw a man go running down Pitt Street quickly, with what appeared to be something in his hand. She didn’t get a good enough look to tell his age or what he was wearing, she said, but something about his behavior seemed odd. 

After learning of the robbery near Prytania Street, the woman said she felt the construction fences and the relative difficulty of getting around made residents more vulnerable to crime. 

“I feel like there are a lot of people on foot that can take advantage,” the woman said. 

Police investigate a report of an armed robbery in the 5300 block of St. Charles Avenue. (Robert Morris, UptownMessenger.com)

Ten minutes later on the 5300 block of St. Charles (near Leontine Street), a woman in her early 20s was returning from her vehicle when she was confronted by a man with a gun, according to the initial NOPD report in that case.

“The perpetrator pointed the gun at the victim’s face and demanded her car keys,” according to the NOPD report. “The victim dropped the keys and the perpetrator fled in her vehicle.” 

A woman exiting the building while police investigated said she was told there had just been a robbery outside. 

“I thought this was a safe neighborhood,” she said, before hurrying to her own vehicle. 

Investigators examine a Honda Civic recovered as part of Thursday’s robbery investigations that matches the description of a vehicle taken Sunday in a robbery on Laurel Street. (Robert Morris, UptownMessenger.com)

Seven robberies between Saturday, Aug. 8, and Thursday, Aug. 13. Not shown: an eighth robbery at 5 a.m. Friday on Willow near Octavia. (map via NOPD)

The investigation continued into Thursday night. At one point, officers could be heard on police radio pursuing a Honda CRV described as similar to that taken on St. Charles. Around 11:30 p.m., officers and detectives from the Second and Sixth districts converged on Harmony Street just off LaSalle in Central City, where they found a blue Honda Civic parked that matched the description of a car taken Sunday on Laurel Street as part of a spree of up to five previous Uptown robberies all believed to be connected.

A third robbery was reported hours later in the 5500 block of Willow Street (between Octavia and Joseph streets). A man in his early 60s and a woman in her mid 20s were sitting on the porch around 5 a.m. Friday, Aug. 14, when an armed man confronted them, grabbed the woman’s purse and then left, the report in that case states. 

Anyone with information in any of these cases is urged to call the NOPD Second District station at 658-6020 to speak to a detective, or CrimeStoppers at 822-1111 to leave an anonymous tip that could be eligible for a cash reward. 

NOPD Second District Lt. Jennifer Dupree speaks to a resident on Harmony Street after the nearby discovery of a car believed to be stolen in a robbery. (Robert Morris, UptownMessenger.com)