Trenton robber used a BB gun in month-long crime spree: COPS
TRENTON » An alleged serial robber who wreaked havoc on businesses near his home used a metal BB gun during a month-long crime spree, according to investigators who captured him this week.
Justin Johnson, 23, was arrested Tuesday when detectives saw him in an alley about 100 yards from a Dunkin’ Donuts that he allegedly robbed twice before.
Officials say he had a black mask, silver metal BB gun and a white plastic bag that detectives say were previously used in each robbery.
“Mostly likely, we stopped him from committing another robbery,” Lt. Rolando Ramos said. “We don’t know if he was going back to rob Dunkin’ again. But he was ready. He had the bag, the mask and the gun.”
Police say Johnson committed six commercial robberies between November 5 and December 6, wearing nearly identical clothing each time and using the same weapon.
On Nov. 5, officials say, Johnson walked into a grocery store in the 600 block of South Olden Avenue around 12:15 p.m. and robbed the deli using the silver BB gun. Officials say he jumped over the counter and removed $200 from the cash register before fleeing with an accomplice.
Three days later, officials say, Johnson robbed the Paketeria Food Market in the 200 block of South Olden Avenue around 8 a.m. Officials say he fled with $150.
Then, on Nov. 9, Johnson allegedly robbed Mama Grifa Deli in the 400 block of Bert Avenue. Police say he walked into the store around 1:30 p.m. and jumped over the counter. He took $300 from the register and fled in a blue Toyota, according to investigators. These are screenshots from surveillance videos of a serial robber in Trenton.
Later, on Nov. 21, Johnson robbed the Dunkin’ Donuts at the corner of South Olden and Hamilton avenues, according to officials who say he left footprints on the counter when he jumped on top of it and forced the owner to open the register. He fled with $800 during that robbery.
Then, Johnson allegedly robbed that same Dunkin’ Donuts again eight days later, and escaped with $600 from the store.
He robbed the Paketeria Food Market a second time on December 6 and escaped with $600 after ransacking the store around 6:30 a.m. Officials say detectives were actually in the area when he robbed the Paketeria again, but Johnson disappeared shortly after the robbery was reported to police.
“When he got that one by us, that’s when we knew he lived in the area,” Ramos said. “He was disappearing so quickly because he would hit the stores and run to his house.”
Detectives were surveilling South Olden Avenue early Tuesday when they saw Johnson walking in an alley around 7 a.m. wearing clothes the suspect wore in each of the previous robberies, all of which were captured on surveillance video.
“The metal BB gun appeared real and had black tape wrapped around the handle, matching what we saw in the surveillance videos,” Ramos said. “With all the evidence we have from the other investigations, we charged him for all the robberies.”
Police say they also recovered the Toyota used in one of the incidents, and that the vehicle was stolen out of Lawrence about week before the Mama Grifa robbery.
Police also believe Johnson was involved in several street robberies. Anyone who believes Johnson robbed them is asked to call cops at 609-989-4155.
The investigations and arrest were conducted by the Robbery/Assault Unit under the command of Sgt. Robert Mathes Jr. and the Violent Crimes Unit led by Sgt. Daniel Pagnotta III.