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Radford police say 3 crimes are unrelated
The unusual rash of incidents in the city took place within a 2-mile radius in a span of four days.
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Radford police are continuing to investigate what they say are three unrelated incidents that happened during an “unusual” four days of crime.
It started early Saturday , when police were called to the 7-Eleven on Tyler Avenue after an attempted shoplifting, in which one suspect showed a handgun to a convenience store employee. Just four hours later, a 19-year-old woman called police to report that she had been raped by four men. On Tuesday night, police responded to a call about a home invasion and robbery.
“It’s unusual [the three incidents] happened in such a short time period,” said police Lt. Andy Wilburn . “[It’s] hopefully not a predictor of future behavior.”
“I would let the public know that we’re doing all we can to make sure that their neighborhoods are safe, and if they happen to notice suspicious activity, please give us a call,” Police Chief Don Goodman said. “We’re here to help .”
While police announced Wednesday night that two arrests were made following the home invasion, Wilburn said one man is still wanted.
Wilburn said officers responded to the Copper Beech Apartments in the 100 block of Copper Beach Drive at 8:38 p.m. Tuesday. When they got there, two people met them, claiming that two men came into their unlocked unit demanding jewelry , Wilburn said.
One of the men pistol-whipped one of the residents in the head, based on the police department’s investigation. The resident refused treatment. The two men took jewelry and other unidentified items from the residence, Wilburn said.
Johnie Winfield Hood, 20, of Belspring, was arrested early Wednesday and charged with conspiring to break and enter and conspiring to commit grand larceny. He was held in the New River Valley Regional Jail on a $5,000 bond, according to a news release.
De’Lonnie Leon Leggett, 21, of Radford, was arrested Wednesday afternoon and charged with breaking and entering, robbery and the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. He was being held in the regional jail with no bond, according to the release.
A third man is still at large. Wilburn said police have warrants on file for Justin Santea Little, 23, of Radford. He is considered armed and dangerous, and wanted on charges of breaking and entering, robbery and the use of a firearm in the commission of a robbery. Wilburn said Little is a 6-foot, 2-inch black man who weighs 192 pounds.
The four men captured on video during the shoplifting incident on Saturday had not been identified as of Wednesday evening, Wilburn said.
He said officers were called at 2 a.m. to the 300 block of Tyler Avenue for a report of shoplifting at a 7-Eleven store.
A store employee confronted one suspect in the parking lot and retrieved the unidentified stolen item, Wilburn said. The employee told officers the man then lifted up his shirt to reveal a gun in his waistband.
Wilburn said three others accompanied the initial suspect. Police believe the four men had attended a concert at the Bondurant Center on East Main Street that evening.
Police also initially believed that the four men involved in the alleged rape had also attended a concert at the Bondurant Center. Instead, Wilburn said on Wednesday that the 19-year-old woman met those men at a party on Friday night.
The men later went to the woman’s apartment in the 700 block of New River Drive, and police were called just after 6 a.m., Wilburn said. The three incidents occurred within a 2-mile radius , but Goodman said there is no reason to believe they are connected.
“It’s certainly our most populated part of the city,” Goodman said. “It’s just where people are.”