Timeline of a robbery spree: 3 armed males charged

APPLE VALLEY, Minn. (KMSP) - Two adults and a 17-year-old male have been charged after a spree of four armed robberies Wednesday night in Dakota County.

Police say a group of men committed four armed robberies in Apple Valley, Eagan and Burnsville before crashing their vehicle into a police squad car.

“This was a series of violent crimes which terrorized four separate victims. We are thankful that none of these victims were physically injured and that the police were able to make these arrests as quickly as they did,” said James Backstrom, the Dakota County Attorney.

THE CHARGES

According to the Dakota County Attorney’s Office, Daiquawn Michael Burrell-Smith, 21, of St. Paul, Jared Otha Washington, 27, of Minneapolis and the 17-year-old have been charged with multiple felonies in connection with the robberies. A motion has been filed to charge the teen as an adult.

Each person faces three aggravated robbery counts, one attempted robbery count, four assault counts and one burglary count. The driver, Washington, will also face a count of fleeing a peace officer in a motor vehicle.

The 17-year-old was also charged with one count of possession of a firearm under the age of 18.

THE ROBBERIES

According to a criminal complaint filed in District Court, the car the suspects used was stolen at gunpoint in Minneapolis Tuesday before it was involved in the robberies the next day.

Incident 1:

At 4:56 p.m. in Apple Valley, two armed men entered a victim’s car, pointing their guns at them. The thieves stole the victim’s cellphone, keys and wallet.

Incident 2:

At 6:10 p.m. in Eagan, two males exited the back seat of their car, pointed their guns at a victim and knocked them to the ground. They took the victim’s cell phone and wallet.

Incident 3:

6:25 p.m. in Burnsville, a victim was inside her vehicle when she was approached by two men who tried to open the locked doors. One armed robber tapped on the driver’s window with a handgun and told the victim he would kill her if she did not get out of the car. The victim honked her horn and the robbers fled.

Incident 4:

At 6:40 p.m. in Apple Valley, the victim was followed to his home by the robbers. After parking in his garage, he was approached by two males who took his cell phone and keys at gun point. However, the third robber came in, told the other two to return the items, and they all fled.

THE ARREST

The victim in this second incident activated their tracking app on their phone, which allowed law enforcement to track the suspect vehicle to a parking lot in Apple Valley just after 7 p.m.

There, the suspect vehicle tried to flee and struck a marked patrol car that blocked the vehicle’s escape route.

All three individuals were arrested. Three handguns were taken, two of which were reported stolen from Nashville, Tennessee in September.

Victims two and three were taken to the arrest site to identify the robbers. The fourth victim identified the robbers from photographs.