Series of armed robberies over the weekend target gas stations

Six people were robbed at gunpoint in Wichita between early Saturday and late Sunday.

The latest robbery, on Sunday night, occurred outside a Burger King while a man tried to meet with someone to sell his cellphone, Officer Charley Davidson said Monday.

The 26-year-old told police he went to the fast-food restaurant in the 4200 block of East Harry at around 11:30 p.m., and as he waited outside, a man approached him, grabbed the phone and ran off, Davidson said.

A few minutes later, a second man approached the 26-year-old, pulled out a handgun and demanded cash. Police are trying to determine if the two men were working together, Davidson said.

The 26-year-old then drove home and called police. No descriptions of the robbers were given.

The other armed robberies occurred at convenience stores:

▪ The QuikTrip in the 1600 block of East Lincoln was robbed just after midnight Saturday. An employee said a man went into the business and indicated he had a gun. The clerk gave him cash and the man left. The man was about 6-feet tall, 170 pounds wearing a hat, a blue hooded sweatshirt and black sweatpants.

▪ Just before 1 a.m. Saturday, the QuikTrip in the 600 block of South Hillside was robbed. When police arrived, a store employee told them a man demanded money. Once cash was in hand, he left in an unknown vehicle. The report calls the incident an armed robbery but doesn’t say if the suspect pulled out a weapon. The man is in his 20s, is about 5-feet-10-inches to 6-feet tall, 170 pounds, slim, wearing a blue hooded sweatshirt and a black hat.

▪ At 4:40 a.m. Saturday, officers were sent to the Kwik Shop in the 2800 block of East Douglas after an employee told police a man indicated he had a weapon and demanded money. He took cash and left. The suspect is in his 20s, is 5-feet-9-inches, weighs between 150 and 160 pounds and wore a baseball cap an dark-colored sweatpants.

▪ Shortly after 10 p.m. Saturday, the Phillips 66 in the 1200 block of South Rock Road was robbed when a man pointed a handgun at an employee and demanded money. The man was described as being in his 20s, approximately 6-feet tall, wearing a blue hooded sweatshirt and blue jeans.

▪ On Sunday, a man went into the Valero gas station in the 800 block of South Meridian, pulled out a handgun and took cash. The man wore a hooded sweatshirt that was dark blue at the top and light blue on the bottom. He wore red shoes and shorts with three stars on each leg, according to photos released by the police department on Facebook.

Police are working to determine if the convenience store robberies are connected.

Davidson said anytime a robbery occurs, residents should try to be a “good witness” by getting as much information and a detailed description of the robber.

For business owners who are worried they could be targeted next, Davidson said they should contact their community policing officer who can give them advice on how to stay safe.

According to records, police investigated 683 robberies last year. As of Oct. 7, police have investigated more than 480.

Asked what officers are doing to stop robberies, Davidson said some businesses employ off-duty officers.

“Obviously we’re continuing to look at crime trends as a police department and if we see a crime trend occurring, we work proactively to try and identify suspects involved in that,” he said. “We’re constantly working and building partnerships with our community leaders. We have community policing, we’re building partnerships with our community so when cases like this happen, we can have that information shared with us to help identify suspects and lead to an arrest.”

This story was originally published October 23, 2017 at 12:40 PM with the headline "Series of armed robberies over the weekend target gas stations."