A week of fear for employees at two District businesses ended with cuffs for a man charged with armed robbery. The Metropolitan Police Department reported arresting 37-year-old Anthony Maurice Smith, after detectives linked him to a pair of knife-point heists that occurred just hours apart.
The first robbery unfolded late on March 17, as Smith allegedly entered a store on the 1300 block of North Capitol Street, Northwest, where he pulled a knife on the store workers demanding they open the cash register, he made off with the cash from the till. The next morning the suspect wasn't done, he hit a second establishment on the unit block of New York Avenue, Northeast employing the same M.O. and again escaping with cash, according to the Metropolitan Police Department.
Detectives had their break when Fifth District officers on patrol spotted Smith, still wearing the attire described by the robbery victims, barely two hours after the second incident had jolted the early morning calm. Smith was detained without a kerfuffle and is now facing charges for the frightening spree.
MPD's Criminal Investigations Division revealed Smith's arrest on March 21, a turn of events bringing some relief to the rattled employees and neighborhood frequenters alike. Smith charged with the paranormal-like sequence of events quickly spiraling from threat to theft, theft to the manhunt, and finally, to an arrest.
