Three armed robberies occur in Rock Hill within minutes of each other, police say
Three armed robberies occurred within minutes of each other March 4 in Rock Hill, including one that happened after a man offered a ride to one of the suspects, according to police reports.
Detectives are investigating if there is any connection between the cases, said Mark Bollinger, public information officer for the Rock Hill Police Department. No arrests have been made.
Following is the information that was reported to police about each incident:
▪ At 9 p.m., an officer responded to the 1900 block of Ellis Street for a strong-arm robbery, a report states. The officer met with a man, who said his wife had been robbed as they were walking in Oakwood Acres Park, the report states.
The man told police that another man asked them for directions, followed them out of the park onto Ellis Street and then tried to take his wife’s necklace, the report says. The man told police he tried to get the suspect away from his wife and was “punched in the face several times and was nearly knocked out,” the report states.
The man told police the suspect took the necklace and pulled a knife on him, demanding money, the report says. The man gave the suspect $300 and the suspect, who was wearing a mask, ran toward Cherry Road.
The couple was taken to Piedmont Medical Center. Their conditions were not listed on the report.
Moments after the Ellis Street robbery, police received calls of several other armed robberies in the area, the report states.
▪ At 9:15 p.m., officers went to the Neighborhood Walmart on Cherry Road in response to an armed robbery, a report says. A woman told police she was working near the gas pumps at Walmart when a man wearing a mask pointed a gun at her and demanded money, the report states.
The woman told police the suspect tried to enter the gas center where the registers are located, but the door was locked, the report states. Once the man had his back turned, the woman told police she ran and saw the suspect run from the scene toward a car, the report says. The man did not get any money, the report says.
▪ At 9:22 p.m., an officer went to Sidney Street in response to a strong-arm robbery, a report states. A man told police he asked two men for gas money while at a nearby gas station and they pumped gas into his car for him, the report states.
The man told police one of the men asked for a ride to Sidney Street, the report states. The man told police that the other man got into the car with him, while the second man followed in another car, the report says.
On Sidney Street, the man told police the passenger got out of his car, went to his friend’s car and grabbed a gun from the trunk, the report states. The man told police both men pointed guns at him and demanded his possessions, including $100 in cash and medication, the report says.
No other information, including descriptions of the suspects, was available on the reports.
A cash register was also stolen from Marco’s Pizza on Heckle Boulevard the same night, Bollinger said. No one was at the front of the store at the time of the incident, he said.
Detectives are looking into if the Marco’s Pizza incident is related to the robberies, Bollinger said.
This story was originally published March 6, 2017 at 1:51 PM with the headline "Three armed robberies occur in Rock Hill within minutes of each other, police say."