Minneapolis robbery spree: Teens facing charges

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Five teens face charges in two separate robbery cases after a spree in Minneapolis last weekend. 

The suspects charged this week range in age from 14 to 17.

One suspect, a 17-year-old boy, was arrested after robberies Sunday night in the Uptown area and Northeast Minneapolis. Police say he was part of a group in a Mazda CX-5 targeting people on the street. He was arrested after police tracked down the Mazda along the 1700 block of Newton Avenue North.

That teen faces three counts of robbery and a charge of possession of a firearm.

That night, Minneapolis police put in place its new robbery response protocol to combat the string of robberies. Under that strategy, police temporarily stop responding to non-emergency calls and flood robbery areas with extra units.

Through the day on Sunday, officers reported 14 robberies between sprees late Sunday morning and Sunday night. Chief Brian O'Hara said the circumstances of the spree, young people in vehicles targeting people on the street, matched another spree of robberies earlier in the month.

Three of the other suspects, ages 16 and 17, were arrested after a robbery on Monday along Girard Avenue South – the same area as Sunday's spree in Uptown.

In that case, a woman said she was attacked by a group of four after parking her car and walking toward her apartment around 7:30 p.m. The victim said one of the suspects grabbed her arms and took her keys and the group made off with her Toyota Camry.

Police said the vehicle was spotted about two hours later in the area of an apartment building on Holmes Avenue. All four people in the vehicle were arrested. It's unclear if this group is connected to the larger spree.

As for the final suspect charged, the criminal complaint for the 14 year old is not publicly available, but prosecutors say he was involved in Sunday's spree.