As much as we know: After being relatively quiet robbery-wise in the French Quarter for some time, all hell broke loose last week--just in time to show out-of-town JazzFesters the real New Orleans. We counted at least 13 robberies in the Quarter in the last week or so:
- Monday (4.30.12) 12:12 p.m.:
A lone robber, claiming he had a weapon, held up the Chase Bank, 201 St. Charles Ave., festooned in a safari hat and bright yellow safety vest. After handing the teller a note and getting an undisclosed amount of cash, he fled on foot in the lake-bound direction on Gravier Street. He was described as a light-skinned black male, 20 to 25 years old, 5'4" to 5'6" tall, wearing a yellow construction vest, a khaki fishing hat, a dark long-sleeved shirt, khaki pants, and sunglasses. Anyone with information on this robbery is asked to call the FBI at 816-3000. A reward of $5,000 for information leading to his arrest and indictment is being offered by the banking association.
- Monday (4.30.12) 12:40 a.m.:
A 30-year-old white man was robbed by a black dude armed with a chrome-plate semi-automatic pistol who came out of nowhere on Ursulines Avenue near Dauphine Street and demanded "give me all of it." The victim gave up his wallet, iPhone, and $50. He ran to the Port of Call at Dauphine and Esplanade Avenue and called the police. Using the phone's built-in tracking device, cops located Julius Dyson, 31, and charged him with armed robbery, possession of a firearm by a felon, and illegal possession of stolen things. He was booked into OPP on $147,500 bond.
- Sunday (4.29.12) 12:26 p.m.: The victim (no age, sex, or race given) was robbed of cash from his hand in the 600 block of Decatur Street by 2 black boys who swooped down on bicycles. The young punks were described as 16-year-old, both 5'10" tall, one heavy set, wearing a white T-shirt and khaki shorts, and the other thin built, wearing a gray T-shirt and blue jeans.
- Sunday (4.29.12) 5:50 a.m.: A trio of white men, aged 29, 37, and 39, were robbed by a black guy as they walked near Dauphine and Dumaine streets. When one of the victims refused after the robber demanded they empty their pockets, he pulled a pistol and got what he wanted: cash and a iPhone. The robber was wearing a red hoodie, black pants and a black cap.
- Sunday (4.29.12) 4:25 a.m.:
The victim (no age, sex or race given), a visitor from Australia in town for JazzFest, was robbed in the 1300 block of Canal Street by a black thug who grabbed his wallet and fled, after the tourist asked him for directions to his hotel. Police arrested James A. Williams, 21, and charged him with simple robbery. Williams, appearing none too bright, gave Magistrate Robert Blackburn the finger during his first court appearance; Blackburn showed him who's boss and set his bond at an exceptionally high $150,000. Enjoy Sheriff Gusman's hellhole, Mr. Williams.
- Sunday (4.29.12) 1:15 a.m.: The victim (no age, sex, or race given) was robbed while walking in the 900 block of Dumaine Street by 2 black punks who grabbed his iPhone from his hand and fled on Burgundy Street toward Esplanade Avenue. The robbers were described as 18 to 22 years old, one 5'6" to 5'10" tall, with a medium build, wearing a red T-shirt, and the other as 5'10" tall, with a medium build, wearing a white T-shirt.
- Saturday (4.28.12) 12:05 a.m.: A 44-year-old white woman walking in the 1000 block of St. Ann Street was robbed of her purse by an armed black thug. The robber was described as 18 to 22 years old, 5'6" tall, with a thin build and short twists in his hair.
- Friday (4.27.12) 12:40 a.m.: A 46-year-old white man walking on Dauphine Street near Gov. Nicholls Street when he was robbed by 2 armed black guys who demanded that he empty his pockets and take off his pants. He did and they fled toward Canal Street; the police report doesn't say if they took the pants as well as the contents. One robber was described as 5'10" tall, with a medium build, dark complexion, and gold teeth on his upper and lower jaws, wearing a dark-colored hat or scarf on his head; there was no description of his accomplice.
- Friday (4.27.12) 1:30 a.m.: A white couple, tourists from Georgia, walking in the 100 block of Exchange Alley, just off Canal Street, were held up by a black boy who lifted his shirt to reveal a handgun tucked in his waist band. He ordered the man to drop his wallet on the ground. The man refused, but his companion, 37, gave up her purse. The robber escaped on Iberville Street toward the river in a silver or light blue sedan driven by a black chick. He was described as 20 years old, 5'7" to 5'8" tall, with a thin build and chin-length braids, wearing a short-sleeved white T-shirt and blue jeans.
- Wednesday (4.25.12) 5:30 a.m.: A woman (no age or race given) walking home from work in the 100 block of Barrone Street, just off Canal Street, was attacked from behind by a white who tugged at her purse. She struggled with him and was knocked to the ground. He fled with the purse into a car. The description of the robber was only that he had light brown hair and was wearing a white T-shirt. The getaway car was described as a 4-door white 2006-2007 Ford Crown Vic--like the NOPD drives--with a dark-colored bungee cord holding the trunk lid closed.
- Wednesday (4.25.12) 2:30 a.m.: Two black women, 24 and 25, were walking in the 400 block of Iberville Street when an 2 black thugs came up and and one pulled a pistol and demanded their purses, then told them to run. They did, leaving behind a robber described as 25 to 35 years old, 5'8" tall, with a medium build, dark complexion, dreadlocks and gold teeth, wearing black and gray clothing and a black stocking cap over his hair.
- Wednesday (4.25.12) 1:49 a.m.:
A 42-yeaar-old white guy had just withdrawn cash from the ATM in the Boondock Saint bar, 731 St. Peter St., and was walking to Bourbon Street with his cash and wallet in his hand when he was warned by a black dude that he should not be carrying his money that way. Then the black guy showed him why: he snatched the cash from his hand and fled on foot. After a chase that ended in the 400 block of Royal Street, 2 Bourbon Promenade officers apprehended Kirk Mitchell, 28, and charged him with simple robbery. Labeled a career criminal with 8 felony arrests, Mitchell is in OPP on $50,000 bond.
- Tuesday (4.24.12) 9:00 p.m.: A woman (no age or race given) waiting for the Algiers ferry at the terminal at the end of Canal Street was robbed by 2 black thugs who overpowered her. They first tried wresting away her purse and she struggled. During the altercation an envelope carrying $400 in cash from a check she had just cashed fell from her bra onto the ground and the robbers pounced on it, removing the loot and fleeing. One robber was described as in his mid-20's, 5'11" tall, weighing 150 pounds, wearing a red T-shirt, blue jeans and black shoes; the other was 5'4" to 5'5" tall, weighing 140 pounds, with close cut hair and a dark complexion, wearing a green and white shirt and dark jeans. They escaped on a silver-colored 10-speed bicycle.
- Sunday (4.22.12) 11:30 p.m.: A white woman walking in the 800 block of Toulouse Street while texting on her cellphone was shoved against a wooden fence and pinned there by a black thug who had been sitting on a stoop (weren't these the kind of guys Lt. Eddy Selby warned us about?) Wielding a 5" knife, he robbed her of $250 in cash and her cellphone before fleeing toward N. Rampart Street. He was wearing a gray hoodie, blue jeans, and a black hat with a white design on the front.
- Tuesday (4.17.12) 3:30 p.m.: A student (no age given) riding the RTA bus in the 600 block of Canal Street was robbed by several of his classmates from an unnamed school who took his wallet from his pocket and then returned it, minus the cash in it.
- Thursday (4.12.12) 6:15 p.m.: A 75-year-old white man was robbed in the notorious 100 block of Bourbon Street by a black guy described only as wearing a white shirt and green pants who attempted to pickpocket him and then fought him for his wallet, breaking free and fleeing on foot.
- Thursday (4.12.12) 11:55 p.m.: A group of 2 white women, 20 and 34, and 2 white men, 22 and 26, wandering down Bourbon Street were robbed a gunpoint near Barracks Street by a black guy with a medium build and medium-length dreadlocks, wearing a red and white striped shirt, dark-colored shorts, dark-colored cap, and dark-colored shoes.
- Friday (4.6.12) 10:30 p.m.:
A woman (no age or race given) was robbed of her iPhone by a black crook who grabbed it from her hand as she walked in the 200 block of Bourbon Street. Police later arrested Detwyne Williams, 18, and booked him with simple robbery. He is in OPP on $20,000 bond.
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Thom Kahler
Thom Kahler
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