A teenage boy was targeted in an attempted robbery at gunpoint on Barberry Lane in Virginia Beach, and within a week, police had three suspects in custody — two adults and a juvenile — thanks largely to a network of license plate cameras that tracked down the getaway vehicle. The armed robbery attempt happened on October 2 in the 3000 block of Barberry Lane.
Responding officers found a juvenile male victim at the scene who was not injured, according to WAVY.com. Police say the suspects threatened the teen at gunpoint, attempted to rob him, and then fled the scene in a vehicle. Detectives turned to the department's automated license plate recognition system to identify that vehicle, a tool the Virginia Beach Police Department confirmed in an official statement was central to breaking the case open quickly.
Nineteen-year-old Te'Shaun Artis and 18-year-old Traiton Goldie were both arrested on October 4, just two days after the robbery, per the same WAVY.com report. A 17-year-old boy was arrested five days later, on October 9, rounding out the trio of suspects named in connection with the case.
Charges Carry Mandatory Prison Time
Artis and Goldie each face charges of robbery with a firearm, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, and conspiracy to commit a felony, the station's report states. Under Virginia Code § 18.2-58, committing robbery while using or displaying a firearm in a threatening manner is classified as a Class 3 felony carrying a prison term of five to 20 years, a statute last updated in 2021 to tier penalties based on weapon use and injury, according to Virginia Law.
The firearm charge adds its own separate consequences. Under Virginia Code § 18.2-53.1, using or attempting to use a firearm during a felony carries a mandatory minimum of three years in prison for a first offense, and judges cannot let it run concurrently with the robbery sentence, as outlined in Hoodline's earlier coverage of a similar Chesapeake robbery case. The 17-year-old faces separate charges of conspiracy to commit a felony and possession of a firearm by a juvenile, per WAVY.com.
How License Plate Cameras Cracked the Case
Virginia Beach Police Chief Paul W. Neudigate said ALPR technology helps remove violent offenders from the street and gives detectives actionable information to work with, per WAVY.com's report. He added that the technology turned what could have been a prolonged investigation into swift arrests, promoting accountability and community safety.
The department has planned 25 fixed Flock Safety camera units at key intersections to work alongside more than 200 mobile ALPR units already mounted on patrol vehicles, according to WVEC. Each fixed camera costs the city roughly $2,500 a year to operate, and data on vehicles not flagged in an investigation is automatically deleted after 30 days, the station reported.
Privacy Advocates Push Back
Not everyone is convinced the trade-off is worth it. The ACLU of Virginia has publicly criticized VBPD's expansion of fixed license plate readers as invasive mass surveillance that logs the movements of non-suspect vehicles without warrants. Privacy advocates argue the camera networks build extensive location histories on law-abiding residents who have never been accused of a crime.
Virginia Beach is far from alone in leaning on this technology. Police departments across Hampton Roads — including Chesapeake, Newport News, Hampton, Portsmouth, and Suffolk — all operate their own ALPR networks, per WVEC's reporting.
Part of a Broader Crackdown on Youth Gun Crime
The Barberry Lane case lands amid a string of recent local enforcement pushes targeting juvenile firearm offenses. Earlier in October, Virginia Beach Police arrested eight people, including a 16-year-old charged with possessing a converted machine gun, during a targeted operation against gang activity and illegal firearms, as Hoodline previously reported. Technology expansion comes amid staffing shortages across departments.
The investigation into the Barberry Lane robbery remains ongoing, according to WAVY.com. No further details on potential additional charges or the status of the suspects' cases have been released.
