Observant neighbor leads to robbery investigation

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - Fort Wayne police are investigating armed robberies at two Asian grocery stores that are only blocks away from each other.

"We're trying to determine if they're related in any way. It is possible the area's being targeted," Raquel Foster, spokesperson for the police department, said.

Last Wednesday, a man in a gray Ivy Tech sweatshirt, black hat and black pants used a plastic grocery bag and silver handgun to rob Mon Asian Grocery store. There were other people in the store at the time.

On Thursday, a man in a green hat, gray Ivy Tech sweatshirt and black pants also used a plastic grocery bag and silver handgun to rob Little Burma Grocery and Gifts. The two stores are two blocks apart on S. Calhoun Street.

Watch the video in this story above to see the entire surveillance clip from Little Burma.

But, police weren't immediately told about Thursday's robbery. An officer found out about it when he was responding to another call.

"I noticed this man was walking in between a house and its garage. The house I know is vacant. There had been some issues with people breaking in to squat there or steal copper. He was looking right and left and up and down. You could not be any more suspicious looking," a woman we'll call Diane said.

Diane called police to report the man.

"He was messing with the waistband of his pants. I couldn't see if he was just messing with it or if he had a weapon. But, then he did put on a glove. Then he walked away so when the police officer came, there was nothing to see," she said.

A few minutes later, she saw the man again.

"He came running through that house's yard, hopped over a fence and went on his way. I waited a bit and went out to check and all this money is lying in the neighbor's plants. The money fell out when he went over the fence, I think. It was spread out like you had released a bunch of confetti," Diane said.

She called police again and when the officer came back, he knew something didn't add up.

"There's all this cash strewn about the alley. This didn't come from a home. Where did it come from? It was too much for an individual to have dropped when they were running," Foster said.

There had been no reports of a robbery in the area, but the officer went around the corner and asked the people in Little Burma Grocery if they had been robbed.

"He learned this store was the victim of a robbery. They had not reported it. At least not yet," Foster said.

Diane captured the suspect's odd behavior on her small flip camera. While her video isn't great quality, it clearly shows the man wearing a green hat, light-colored sweatshirt, and black pants- the same clothes on the robber in the Little Burma surveillance video.

"It wasn't good quality, but nonetheless, we know where he was," Foster said. "That's valuable to us and we do get leads when we release videos like that."

Police are now thanking Diane for her help.

"She did exactly what we would hope anyone would do. She knew vacant homes in the neighborhood had been targeted for copper. She was aware of her surroundings. Do we hope other people will be as responsible as she? Yes. The Fort Wayne Police Department cannot fight these types of crimes alone," Foster said.

Diane thought the man she saw may have been getting ready for a drug deal or some other crime. She never thought he could be a suspect in an armed robbery. But, now she hopes other people will do what she did, and call police with tips about who the man may be.

"Even if they're your friend, that's what you do. Somebody knows that their buddy was wearing a green flat-rimmed baseball cap and gray Ivy Tech sweatshirt on that day. They know. Somebody knows," Diane said.

Anyone with any information about who might be involved with either armed robbery is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (260) 436-STOP (7867).

 

Source: http://www.news.myanmaronlinecentre.com/2013/08/03/observant-neighbor-leads-to-robbery-investigation/