University Police arrested three robbery suspects only 15 minutes after they allegedly assaulted and robbed a non-student early Saturday morning.
Silver Spring residents Kenneth Richard Godfrey, 18; Sandro Javier Victoriano, 22; and Gary Maurice Jones, 18, were charged with robbery, conspiracy to commit robbery and second-degree assault. Godfrey was also charged with possession of a concealed dangerous weapon after police found a three-inch folding knife in his possession. Both Godfrey and Victoriano were also charged with attempted theft. None of the three has any affiliation with the university.
The men allegedly tried to steal the contents of the victim's pockets but were only able to make away with his glasses, police said.
About 5 a.m. Saturday, the 27-year-old victim was walking with a female student from the South Campus Dining Hall toward their car parked along Preinkert Drive. The victim was approached by three men, and a man who police identified as Jones told him: "Yo, money talks, man."
The male then asked the victim what he had in his pockets and put him in a full nelson when the victim tried to walk away. The victim broke the hold and attempted to run when he was punched in the face and then thrown to the ground, where all three men allegedly began to punch and kick him while reaching into his pockets.
During the robbery, the female student with the victim flagged down a student police auxiliary officer and asked for assistance.
"Once [the arrestees] saw a police car they took off," University Police spokesman Paul Dillon said. "People don't normally rob people in front of the cops."
Police called the security operations center, the headquarters for the thousands of security cameras situated around the campus. The three men charged were spotted on camera running toward Knox Road, and operators informed officers in the area, who were able to apprehend them at the CVS in the College Park Shopping Center.
Shortly thereafter, the victim identified the three men at the scene.
"I think it's just outstanding police work. It's a combination of factors — having patrol in the area and [having] witnesses," Dillon said. "I think it was really fortunate that the auxiliary vehicle was out there patrolling at the time, but that's why they're out there."
Dillon did admit it was rare for a crime to be solved so quickly and efficiently.
"It's a good example of our camera system being effective," he added. "Having that information that the camera saw them leaving the scene certainly was a big help for us."
Students were happy the criminals were caught so promptly but were still generally concerned about on-campus crime.
"I think it makes me feel safe," senior French major Paula Kupersanin said. "It's good to hear that the criminals are caught."
Senior psychology major Rebecca Baron said she was happy the on-campus camera system did its job and helped solve a crime because she wasn't even sure they were operational.
"I'm happy that the cameras work because I didn't really know that people actually looked at the footage," Baron said. "I just wish they would have resources off campus where crime is really prevalent."
The men's trial is set for Oct. 23 at the district court in Upper Marlboro. As of Monday, Jones and Victoriano are being held on $75,000 bond, and Godfrey is being held on $150,000 bond.
rhodes@umdbk.com
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Maybe they might get deported too :) or is that being to prejudice :)
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