Nationwide — Five men, aged 18 to 19, face felony charges after police say they robbed a man at gunpoint while he walked home from work. Investigators say the group threatened the victim and took a vape pen before fleeing.
Police said the incident happened around 9:36 p.m. in Winter Haven, Florida, when a silver Nissan Frontier reportedly pulled up beside the victim, and five men got out and approached him.
According to Fox 13 News, investigators said the suspects demanded everything in his pockets. The victim said he only had a cellphone and a green vape pen.
One suspect then lifted his shirt and showed a gun tucked in his waistband, which escalated the situation. The group searched the victim and took the vape pen.
Police said the suspects next demanded his phone, but he refused and said it had a tracker. The group then got back into the truck and left the area.
Officers later found the silver pickup parked outside a home on 7th St SW. They saw several men matching the descriptions outside, but the group ran inside when police arrived.
A 17-year-old girl inside the home initially blocked officers from entering. Police surrounded the residence until everyone came out, and officers detained those involved.
Another 17-year-old girl who had been in the truck told investigators she had been with her boyfriend and friends visiting stores. She said she heard yelling and later saw one man return with a green vape pen.
Police arrested Damarius Jamel Taylor, 18, Tayshawn Williams, 18, Javon Prince Jackson-Roby, 19, Martice Spears Jr., 19, and Deshawn Antwon Lampkin, 19. All face charges of armed robbery and petit theft. Taylor also faces an out-of-county warrant.
The 17-year-old girl from the truck was charged with resisting arrest without violence after giving a false birthdate, and the other 17-year-old girl at the home was also charged with resisting arrest without violence for refusing to allow officers to search for the suspects.