Authorities arrest fourth Toledo robbery suspect
Wednesday, November 5, 2008 6:56 PM PST
By By Leslie Slape
Printable version
E-mail this articleThree Centralia men and a teenage boy are in custody as suspects in an armed robbery Monday at the Toledo Pharmacy.
Three were arrested Monday near Vader and the fourth was arrested early Tuesday afternoon in Centralia.
According to a news release from the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office, four masked males entered the pharmacy shortly after 3:30 p.m., displayed a handgun and left with prescription drugs believed to be OxyContin. No one was injured.
Deputies, Washington State Patrol troopers and police officers from Toledo, Vader, and Winlock converged on the area after a 911 call reporting the robbery.
After a short pursuit, the driver of the suspect vehicle stopped abruptly in the 700 block of State Route 506, east of Vader and two males jumped out and ran. The two who remained in the car were taken into custody at the scene.
The Department of Corrections blocked public access to SR506 as Lewis County Sheriff’s K9 Leko and Cowlitz County Sheriff’s K9 Nitro joined the search. Leko captured one of the suspects, and two weapons were recovered, the news release said.
The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office circulated a photo of the fourth suspect, Kristopher Smith. Tips led deputies to his location in Centralia early Tuesday afternoon and he was arrested without incident, according to Toledo police.
“This is an excellent example of partnerships between local and state law enforcement in responding rapidly to a high-risk incident. We were able to combine our resources and immediately contain the scene and apprehend three of the four armed suspects without further incident,” said Lewis County Sheriff Steve Mansfield in the news release.
In custody:
• Michael Joseph George, 18, Centralia, held without bail on suspicion of attempting to elude police and first-degree robbery.
• Eric Lee Wilkerson, 24, Centralia, held without bail on suspicion of first-degree robbery.
• Kristopher Douglas Smith, 25, Centralia, held without bail on suspicion of first-degree robbery.
• A 17-year-old boy from Centralia, booked into the juvenile detention center.
Pinky wrote on Nov 4, 2008 11:18 AM:
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