Crime & Safety

Suspect arrested in Midtown armed robbery

It was a busy early Wednesday morning for Atlanta Police Department Zone 5 officers

Separate incidents resulted in a pair of arrests in Midtown early Wednesday morning including one man on a charge of armed robbery.

According to Atlanta Police Officer Kim Jones, two brothers were leaving the nightclub , located at 714 Spring Street, at approximately 3:45 a.m. The men were walking to where their car was parked at the nearby Arby’s when they were approached by two men, one who pointed a handgun at the victims and stated, "Give me all you got or I'll kill you."

According to Officer Jones, one victim took all his money out of his pockets and dropped it on the ground and then placed his hands on the hood of his vehicle. The suspects picked up his money and then attempted to rob the victm’s brother. But there were too many people coming out of the club at the time, so the two suspects took off running from the location.

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At this point, a Georgia Tech police officer noticed the two suspects running from the Arby's parking lot, get into a Grey Toyota Prius, and speed off. The Georgia Tech officer followed the Prius before pulling the vehicle over near the intersection of Spring and 17th streets.

Having been notified of a pedestrian robbery, APD Zone 5 officers converged on the scene and later the two victims were brought to where the vehicle had been stopped.

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At this point, the victims positively identified one of the suspects, Duane McNeil, 40, who was charged with armed robbery and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony and transported to the Fulton County Jail. The driver of the vehicle could not be positively identified by the victims, and therefore was released.

A little while later in a separate incident, APD Officer Phyllis White was on a routine patrol in Monroe Drive/Monroe Circle area when she noticed shattered glass on the ground. The officer decided to leave the area for a bit and come back to the location.

According to Officer Jones, Officer White returned to 816 Monroe Circle at approximately 4:15 a.m. and noticed a male actively going through a vehicle. Officer White engaged the suspect, and he stepped out of the vehicle and began to run.

Other units responded to the area and the suspect was captured. James A Booker, 50, who also had in his possession stolen checks from a previous break-in, was charged with two counts of entering an auto, theft by taking and obstruction.

“This is great police work by a young and energetic female officer who has been with the Atlanta Police Department less than two years,’’ said Officer Jones in an email.


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