Police are investigating robberies of two 7-Eleven stores and an attempted robbery of another 7/11 store in the area – at 42nd and Walnut Streets, 58th Street and Whitby Avenue, and 73rd Street and Elmwood Avenue. Police are still looking for the suspects.

The robbery spree started right after midnight at the 58th and Whitby store when a man walked in the store, pointed a long silver revolver at the clerks and demanded money. Both clerks were able to run into secured rooms at the store and the suspect fled without taking anything.

The store at 42nd and Walnut Streets was robbed about 15 minutes later, at approximately 12:15 a.m. by a person whose description matches the first attempted robbery. In this case the suspect also pointed the gun at the clerks, then went behind the counter, pulled out the entire register drawer and fled from the store with approximately $2,000.

The third robbery took place at about 1:30 a.m. at the 7-Eleven store located at 73rd Street and Elmwood Avenue. This time there were two suspects, one of whom was armed with a large silver handgun. The robbers removed cash from the registers (about $320), some scratch off tickets, the clerk’s phone, and also robbed one of the store customers (took his phone and car keys).

No injuries were reported.

The suspect with a gun is described as African American male, dark complexion, 6’2” to 6’4”, slight facial hair, 20 to 25yrs, thin to medium build. He was wearing a dark gray hooded sweat jacket, an orange brimmed baseball cap and dark blue jeans.

We are passing along information about an incident that happened to a neighbor near 48th and Hazel this week. Police advise being cautious when using your cell phone in public.

Alissa was walking down the street with her baby daughter in late afternoon and talking on her phone (an iPhone) when a man ran up to her and grabbed her phone. Alissa wasn’t able to give a detailed description because it happened too fast. Here’s what she writes:

“I just wanted to let everyone know that my iPhone was stolen from my hand (while I was talking on it) on Tuesday, 6/12 on the 4800 block of Hazel Ave at 4:45 PM. The person who took it ran up from behind me, snatched my phone from my hand and continued running very fast. I was carrying my 1 year old daughter in a carrier at the time, so I was quite upset about it. The guy didn’t hurt me or my daughter. He did knock my glasses off, but I think that was accidental since he grabbed the phone when it was up against my ear. We are OK and we filed a police report, but they don’t anticipate finding him or the phone. The police were very responsive and helpful though. They came about 2 minutes after calling 911. We tried to track the phone, but he immediately turned it off and hasn’t turned it on since. I just wanted to give everyone a warning… Please be very careful with having your cell phones out when you are walking around.”

Phone snatching is on the increase around the city.

A reader wrote us this morning about gunfire at 49th and Walton early this morning. Police confirmed that a man was shot while being robbed early at the corner of 49th Street and Walton. The victim was standing on the porch talking on the phone when two unknown men approached him, pointing a black handgun at him. They took the man’s wallet and then shot him in the left leg. They also took his phone but then threw it back at him. The incident happened around 1:45 a.m. Monday morning.

The victim was transported to Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. The attackers, African American males, fled in a silver two-door Ford. The victim was alone at the time of the incident.

View Larger Map

Torin Myer of the 3900 block of Baring Street was apprehended early yesterday near 34th and Hamilton, a few blocks from the Drexel University campus. Police said he is not a student.

Police say Myer was exiting a convenience store and getting on a bicycle near 34th and Hamilton when Drexel University police Captain Fred Carbonara apprehended him. Myer had a BB gun, a knife, gloves and ski mask in his possession. Carbonara recognized Myer from the surveillance video made public last week.

“We had the area saturated yesterday,” said Detective Joe Murray from the Southwest Detectives.  “There was no way he was going to be able to walk around without getting caught. Just wish we had him sooner.”

Murray said Myer confessed to all four robberies.

Myer lived about four blocks from the Green Line Cafe at 3649 Lancaster Ave., which police say he robbed on April 30 and again on May 4. He is charged with robbery, assault and weapons charges in connection to those two robberies, one on April 26 at the Green Line Cafe near 45th and Locust and the May 6 robbery at the Chipotle Mexican Grill at 3925 Walnut St.

Police say Myer suffered from a “drug problem,” which in part explained his motives in the robberies.

He is scheduled to be arraigned later today.

A masked man robbed the Chipotle Mexican Grill at 3925 Walnut St. last night, police said.

The suspect was described as a white male wearing a black mask and police have confirmed that he is the same person responsible for a string of gunpoint robberies at Green Line Cafes within the past two weeks.

The Chipotle robbery took place at about 10:30 p.m.. The restaurant closes at 10 p.m.

Stand by for updates.

(h/t The Daily Pennsylvanian)

The Green Line Cafe on Lancaster Avenue was robbed again late Friday afternoon, police have confirmed. Police believe that the suspect is “definitely the same person” who robbed the same cafe earlier this week and the Green Line at 45th and Locust on April 26.

This time the man was wearing a green Army jacket, dirty blue jeans and black sneakers with white soles. The suspect is a white male in his mid 20′s, 5’9″ tall, medium build, brown hair and a thin mustache.

You can see surveillance video of the suspect from the robbery earlier this week here.

If you have any information about this person, please contact the Southwest Detective Division at 215-686-3183, 215-476-1131, or 215-686-TIPS.