Lilburn, Norcross Robberies Reported Same Night

A robbery reported last month at a Lilburn cell phone store took place the same evening as a Norcross robbery nearby and shares similarities in suspect descriptions with numerous cases in the area.

According to the Lilburn Police report, the cell phone incident occurred around 9:05 p.m. Feb. 16 at Unlimited Wireless, located at 3907 Burns Rd.

The employee told police that she had been working on a computer in the front when two men entered the store and rushed toward her. One of them was armed with a gun and told her, "Give me the money," so she opened the cash register and proceeded to empty it.

The other man, who was carrying a backpack, yelled that she was taking too long and said to hurry up, which was repeated by the first suspect. The second man opened the bag and leaned over the counter, and the employee put the money in it.

The victim watched the two men flee the store. Outside, the suspects were joined by two other men, and they all ran in the parking lot toward Thirsty's Bar and Grill.

A Thirsty's employee pulling into the parking lot told police that she saw the four young men running in dark clothing, but that was it.

The Norcross incident, which was reported around 10 p.m. the same night just a few miles away at China Cooks Restaurant off Tech Drive, had similar descriptions for the suspects. The victims told Gwinnett County Police that two young men came into the store, and one of them was armed and the other had a backpack. Both men were wearing all black and dark face coverings, and they left the scene on foot after they took the money in the cash register.

The only difference was that a third person was acting as a lookout at front door in the Norcross incident. A fourth person was not reportedly seen.

A week before these incidents, two other robberies were reported in nearby Norcross that also had three young male suspects who covered their faces and wore dark clothing. They were reported to have occurred Feb. 9 at La Mejor de Michoacan, an ice cream shop off Pirkle Road, and Simon Enterprises Service Station off Jimmy Carter Boulevard.

Inside the Police Blotter runs regularly every week. The information is based solely on police incident reports provided on request.

See also:

• Suspects in Restaurant Stickup Share Similarities With Other Norcross Robberies