Knife-Wielding Thief Robs Elderly Woman: Cops

SALEM, NH - A Derry man is behind bars in Massachusetts after allegedly robbing an elderly woman in Salem and then using her credit card to purchase Amex gift cards, according to police.

Devin Mack, 31, of Derry, was arrested on Feb. 16, 2016, on robbery and fraudulent use of a credit card charges.

Editor’s note: This post was derived from information supplied by the Salem Police Department. It does not indicate a conviction. Click this link to find out how to get a name removed from a New Hampshire Patch police report.

According to police, at around 2:15 p.m., officers were sent to the Market Basket on South Broadway in Salem for a report of an armed robbery in the parking lot. The victim reported that as she was putting her groceries into her vehicle, a man, armed with a large knife, allegedly demanded her purse.

“The victim immediately screamed for help,” according to Capt. Joel Dolan of the Salem Police Department. “Upon doing so, the suspect pushed the 74-year-old victim to the ground. He then stole her wallet from her purse.”

The officers took a description of the man and the vehicle as he fled the scene in a Honda Accord or Acura-like vehicle, taking Route 28.

Dolan stated that while investigating the crime, officers were called to Kmart for a report that the victim’s card had been used there. Officers learned that a man reportedly purchased $500 worth of American Express gift cards at the store and left. Officers grabbed surveillance screenshots from the store and while doing so, learned that a vehicle matching the description fleeing the scene was stopped in Lawrence, MA, by Mass. State Police.

“Salem officers responded to the location of the motor vehicle stop,” Dolan noted. “They observed a male matching the suspect’s description and identified him as the person from the video surveillance in Kmart. Also on his person and within his vehicle were several items belonging to the victim, to include, her driver’s license and credit card. Additionally, officers located a large military style knife.”

The man – later identified as Mack – was arrested by MSP. Salem Police have drafted a warrant for his arrest on the charges, according to Dolan.

According to online reports, Mack has been arrested a number of times in the past few years.

Mack was arrested in December 2015, according to the Lawrence Eagle-Tribune, for receiving stolen property and two counts of credit card fraud. He was also arrested on warrants out of Derry two months ago. He was reportedly arrested in Somerville, MA, in 2011, for felony breaking and entering as well as warrants for trespassing and uttering a false prescription. He was arrested in May 2011 on warrant in Somerville, according to a post on Patch. In November 2012, he was arrested for breaking and entering, according to Somerville Patch.