A disagreement over a cellphone refund at a Tamarac Boost Mobile store turned into an armed holdup, according to an arrest report, after a 53-year-old Fort Lauderdale man allegedly pulled a black handgun on an employee and demanded cash. Michael Q. Randle was arrested on Tuesday following the armed robbery report and a 911 call from the store.
The incident unfolded at the Boost Mobile location at 5100 West Commercial Boulevard, as reported by Tamarac Talk. An employee told deputies that Randle came into the store demanding a refund and a new phone over a transaction from the week before, according to the outlet's account of deputies' version of events.
The employee said he tried to work out a compromise, offering to give Randle a new phone if he paid $30 in cash. That offer apparently did not sit well with Randle, who according to the arrest report then pulled out a black handgun and pointed it at the employee, demanding $60 in cash instead.
Employee Says Fear Led Him to Comply
Fearing for his safety, the employee said he handed over the money. According to the report, Randle then fled the store on foot, leaving the clerk shaken but unharmed.
Deputies did not have to search far. The report indicates Randle was later found at a nearby home on Bayberry Lane, not far from the Boost Mobile store where the confrontation began.
A separate Broward cellphone-store robbery drew a federal investigation in 2022. In Lauderdale Lakes, a man wearing a security-company uniform allegedly displayed a handgun and demanded phones while holding an employee at gunpoint; the FBI and Broward Sheriff’s Office sought the public’s help identifying him. The case involved merchandise rather than a cash refund dispute, but it also centered on an armed threat against a phone-store worker. The FBI’s notice on the Lauderdale Lakes robbery described the incident.
Armed Robbery Charge Filed
Florida law defines robbery to include taking property by force or by putting someone in fear. When a person carries a firearm or other deadly weapon during a robbery, the offense is a first-degree felony, punishable by up to life in prison. That is the statutory exposure if the allegation is proved; an arrest and charge are not a conviction. Florida’s robbery statute sets out the definition and penalty.
Randle now faces an armed robbery charge in connection with the incident. The case stems entirely from the arrest report and accounts relayed by deputies and the employee, and no additional court proceedings have been detailed publicly at this time.
