The Knoxville Police Department has apprehended two individuals linked to a series of robberies around the University of Tennessee. The suspects, identified as Brandon Donathan, 25, and Sarai Standridge, 24, are residents of Knoxville and were detained following a failed robbery attempt on Luscombe Drive, as reported by WVLT.
Brandishing a handgun, one of the suspects attempted to rob a person at gunpoint, as detailed by WBIR. The police responded to the scene after the victim had been approached by the armed individual. A witness managed to capture footage of the suspect and the getaway vehicle, a white sedan, and observed the suspect disposing of a firearm into nearby foliage.
Shortly after the incident, police stopped the white sedan and arrested Donathan and Standridge. Both suspects were charged with attempted aggravated robbery, and Donathan faces additional counts of robbery or attempted robbery, along with possession of a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony, according to WATE. Further investigation connected them to three robberies near the UT campus, including one where a 22-year-old woman was relieved of her purse.
In one incident reported by the University of Tennessee Police Department, a robbery occurred at 11th Street and Cumberland Avenue yesterday morning. The UT Police described the suspect in that case as a white or Hispanic male wielding a handgun, and dressed in a ski mask and black hoodie, fleeing towards Neyland Drive via 3rd Creek Greenway. Warnings have been issued, and the community is encouraged to report any suspicious activity to the local authorities.
