Following the rash of robberies in the city over the past few weeks, Berkeleyside asked the Berkeley Police Department to break out the statistics, to determine how many of them involved a gun.
Sgt. Mary Kusmiss reports that four of the six robberies so far in December involved a gun. This contradicts the information supplied by the BPD to us when we reported the latest robbery on December 7. A review of November shows 21 of 35 robberies throughout the city involved suspects who were armed — two with a knife and one a B.B. gun.
There have therefore been 23 robberies in Berkeley in November and December to date which involved a gun — and 41 robberies in total.
Update, 16.00: The BPD has announced that it believes five of the recent robberies in north Berkeley can be considered a series. In each case, the male suspect pointed a handgun at a community member and demanded phones, wallets and other small personal items before fleeing on foot. Victims have described the suspect generally as a “black male, late teens to 30 years old with a thin build.” These are the robberies that are believed to be connected:
- 11/13 – 7:20 p.m. Virginia and Franklin Streets
- 11/18 – 11:28 a.m Martin Luther King Jr. Way and Hearst Street
- 11/21 – 2:55 p.m. Hearst and California Streets
- 12/02 – 6:55 p.m. Lincoln and California Streets
- 12/06 – 7:25 p.m. California and Virginia Streets
