A Madison woman was robbed of her purse and iPhone while she was walking down Lathrop street Friday night.
The suspect, a black male in his 20s approached the victim, 18, around 1:43 a.m. and demanded her belongings, a Madison Police Department statement said. The suspect pointed a handgun at the victim after she asked him why she should give up her things and responded “Because I need them,” the statement said.
The victim, who was not a UW student, handed over her purse and phone, the statement said. The victim was not injured during the robbery.
The incident was one of four recent armed robberies near the campus area. The first occurred on Sept. 8 after a home on the 1200 block of Vilas Avenue was forcibly entered by two suspects who were described as black men in their 20s, a MPD statement said. A similar incident with similar suspect descriptions occurred on Sept. 11 at a residence on the 1600 block of Adams Street.
Police believe the two incidents were connected, the statement said, and in both of those home invasions the suspects targeted electronics in the college-aged victims’ homes. Police also suspect a possible link between the two home invasions and another armed robbery that occurred in a parking lot on University Avenue on Sept. 8, the statement said.
MPD spokesperson Joel DeSpain said police do not have any detained suspects, so it is hard to say if Friday’s robbery is related to the two incidents in the Greenbush and Vilas neighborhood or the armed robbery on University Avenue.
“It’s hard to say because we don’t have anyone in custody,” DeSpain said.
According to a timely warning issued to students by the University of Wisconsin Police Department, students should avoid walking home alone at night and never resist giving up their property when prompted by a robber. MPD is still investigating the incident, the timely warning said.
An attempted robbery occurred Friday night when two women were walking along West Johnson Street.
Antonio L. Fleming, 37, was arrested on charges of attempted armed robbery and disorderly conduct while armed and on a probation hold, according to a Madison Police Department Statement. Fleming allegedly emerged from the shadows weilding a knife and told one of the victims he wanted her phone, the statement said.
MPD spokesperson Joel DeSpain said one of the victims grabbed the arm of the other and took off in the other direction. DeSpain said police usually encourage victims to hand over their property to an armed robber when asked, but in this case the victims were able to escape safely as Fleming did not chase them.
“Generally we encourage giving up property when being asked to do so by the robber, but every situation is different,” DeSpain said. “In this case the owner thought they had an avenue to escape.”
DeSpain said the victims also called 911 immediately which helped police track down Fleming on the 300 block of North Brooks Street. DeSpain said the incidents are a continuation of the recent trend of smartphone thefts in the campus area.
