Last Sunday at approximately 10:30 p.m., Buffalo Police arrested three teenagers on Minnesota Avenue, minutes after a series of robberies were committed.
Isiah Powers, 18, of Spring Street, Montek Mastin, 16, of LaSalle Avenue, and a 15-year-old juvenile, allegedly robbed three separate victims in a period of 15 minutes before being arrested by BPD.
"Detectives from the district are looking into any possible connection to previous incidents," said Dennis J. Richards, Buffalo Police Chief of Detectives.
The arrests were made by a special detail of officers patrolling the University Heights area after a recent increase in crime. Some of these officers were undercover, according to The Buffalo News.
"When we see that there's a pattern established with hot spots for crime, we make sure that we have additional officers on hand to respond and patrol," Richards said.
In the first robbery committed on Sunday, a cellular phone was stolen from a person at gunpoint around 10:20 p.m. on Winspear Avenue.
The gun was later found to be a BB gun, Richards said.
Moments after the first robbery, a woman's bag was forcibly taken from her shoulder near Minnesota and Comstock Avenues. In the same location minutes later, the three suspects allegedly robbed another male victim of his cell phone at gunpoint in the same location.
The special detail of police will continue to patrol the Heights, according to Richards.
"The crime detail remains in place until the uptick in crime is diminished," he said.
While the robberies that occurred were outside of campus police jurisdiction, UB Chief of Police Gerald Schoenle is happy to see arrests made in an area where students are often the victims of crime.
"We encourage our students to continue to be cautions when out after dark," Schoenle said. "Use common sense and be aware of your surroundings."
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
