Suspect kidnaps victims at gunpoint, forcing them to go to ATMs and withdraw cash
Police are searching for a man who they believe is responsible for about seven armed robberies over the last two months in the Oak Lawn and Uptown areas. In several of the robberies, the suspect has kidnapped victims at gunpoint and forced them into their vehicles, before taking them to ATMs to withdraw cash.
The offenses have occurred between 6:30 p.m. and 3:30 a.m. and began around mid-August, according to Sr. Cpl. Gerardo Monreal, a spokesman for the Dallas Police Department.
Monreal said the suspect is a 25-to-30-year-old black male who stands between 6 feet and 6 feet 3 inches tall and weighs 170 to 200 pounds. He is clean shaven and dresses neatly in casual attire. He also appears to be growing bolder over time.
In at least two of the incidents, the suspect has used an accomplice and forced his way into victims’ homes, taking valuables and threatening their lives.
“Right now I believe there are seven cases,” Monreal said. “Detectives believe that they’re similar because of the pattern that they’ve used. They’re going to have more officers working that area.”
Monreal said he was unable to provide a complete list of offenses for which detectives believe the suspect is responsible. According to a partial list, the crimes have generally occurred in the areas commonly referred to as Turtle Creek and Uptown, south and east of Oak Lawn Avenue and outside the Cedar Springs entertainment district.
In the most recent incident, at about 11 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 10, the suspects kidnapped a woman who was retrieving something from her vehicle outside a condo on Hood Street. The suspects took her back inside, where they forced another woman to get dressed and drive to a Chase Bank ATM on Lemmon Avenue to withdraw money.
They eventually made off with $500 in cash from the ATM and thousands of dollars worth of other valuables from the condo.
While many of the victims have been women, they also include men, police reports show.
Anyone with information about the crimes should contact the Central Patrol Investigative Section at 214-607-4414.
This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition October 16, 2009.
