Crime & Safety

Sheriff Investigating Armed Robbery Of Brandon Cell Phone Store

The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office is asking for the public's help to identify a pair of cell phone thieves.

BRANDON, FL -- The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office is asking for the public's help to identify a pair of cell phone thieves that robbed a Brandon business.

On Dec. 21 at 3:33 p.m., two black men broke into a building at 410 S. Ware Blvd., Tampa, and proceeded to the fourth floor where the Cell Xchange business is located.

There, they encountered an employee. One man brandished a semiautomatic handgun and forced the employee to open the safe in the business. The two men removed cell phones from the safe and placed them in a blue Adidas shoe box.

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They then fled to a 2000-01 four-door silver Chevy Malibu missing its front and left hubcap. The car headed west through the parking lot, then north on Ware Boulevard.

One man is described as 5 feet 5 inches to 5 feet 7 inches tall, 235-250 pounds, last seen wearing a burnt orange sweatshirt, light-colored shirt, dark pants, dark shoes and dog tags around his neck.

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Anyone with information is asked to call the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office at 813-247-8200 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-873-TIPS (8477).

Video via Hillsborough Sheriff

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