Police: Bus-stop thief stole cellphones at gunpoint
An East Mount Airy man has been charged with committing a string of robberies in December in which he allegedly approached people at bus stops and stole their cellphones at gunpoint, Philadelphia police announced Wednesday.
An East Mount Airy man has been charged with committing a string of robberies in December in which he allegedly approached people at bus stops and stole their cellphones at gunpoint, Philadelphia police announced Wednesday.
Police said Eric Haynes, 22, of the 7800 block of Michener Avenue, committed eight cellphone robberies around East Mount Airy between Dec. 6 and 28.
Haynes was taken into custody for a firearms violation Dec. 30 after police stopped his Hyundai Sonata on East Mount Airy Avenue and found a 9mm handgun inside. They had been looking for someone who drove such a car after seeing surveillance video of a robbery from two days before.
After his initial arrest, police continued to investigate the series of robberies and obtained evidence linking Haynes to each, police said. Authorities did not specify what the evidence was.
Haynes was charged with eight counts of robbery and related offenses, in addition to the firearms charge. He was being held at the Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility, according to court records.