Ex-con charged in series of 7-Eleven robberies in Macomb, Oakland counties
A two-day robbery spree at 7-Eleven stores in Macomb and Oakland counties came to an end when Warren police took an excon from Detroit into custody.
Mark Darnell Diggs, 57, was ar - raigned Wednesday in 37th District Court in connection with armed robberies at two 7-Eleven stores in Warren. He is expected to also be charged in Ferndale, Roseville and St. Clair Shores.
In a news release, Warren Police Commissioner William Dwyer “credits the hard work and dedication of both the Detective Bureau and the Special Operations Unit in locating and arresting this dangerous felon.”
According to the release, Warren police noticed a string of holdups at 7-Eleven stores in neighboring communities that had similarities to a pair of incidents in their city.
The first robbery in took place about 5 a.m. Oct. 24 Saturday at a 7-Eleven on Schoenherr at Nine Mile roads when a man armed with a handgun robbed a clerk.
The following day, a suspect with the same physical description held up a store on Nine Mile between Mound and Ryan roads. In that instance, the robber took about $400 and 10 packs of cigarettes.
Investigators learned 7-Elevens in the area were also hit including:
• In Ferndale, a store at 805 E. Nine Mile at 4:47 a.m. Saturday.
• Roseville police reported a robbery at 28991 Groesbeck around 2:30 a.m. Sunday.
• In St. Clair Shores, a store at 23019 Jefferson Avenue was robbed around 9 a.m. Sunday.
Dwyer said a police evidence technician was able to recover a fingerprint from the scene of one of the Warren robberies.
They traced the print to Diggs.
On Wednesday, Detective Jeffrey Masserang and the Warren Special Operations United located and arrested the suspect at an Express Lube on Gratiot Avenue near French Road in Detroit.
A search warrant was obtained and executed at Diggs’ residence in Detroit. Police found three handguns, including a stolen one that matched the one used in the Warren robberies, according to the release.
Police also found clothing that could be seen in surveillance videos.
The Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office authorized two counts of armed robbery, two counts of felony firearm, and two counts of felon in possession of a firearm.
According to the Michigan Department of Corrections, Diggs has an extensive criminal history dating back to the early 1980s.
Records show he served 13 years for an unarmed robbery in Macomb County before being discharged. Other Macomb offenses include larceny from a person, receiving and concealing a stolen automobile; resisting and obstructing causing injury; third- degree fleeing from police; assault with intent to rob while unarmed. In addition, he served time for various offenses in Oakland and Wayne counties, records show.
Diggs also has at least eight different aliases, according to MDOC.
He was arraigned before 37th District Judge John Chmura, who set a $ 400,000 cash bond. A probable cause conference is scheduled for Nov. 5.