Police arrested Raphael Garay of Springfield a few blocks away. The second suspect got away but police know his name and are seeking an arrest warrant.
Raphael GaraySPRINGFIELD - Springfield detectives arrested one of two suspects involved in a midday robbery at Spring and Pearl streets in which a man pushing his child in a baby stroller was robbed at gunpoint, police said.
It’s the second armed robbery in less than a week in which a parent was been targeted while they had a young child present.
On May 4, Diem Nguyen was attacked by a man with a knife as she went to a grocery store on Belmont Avenue with her four year old daughter. The woman fought off her attacker and suffered a minor stabbing injury before people came to her aid and chased him off.
The suspect in that incident remains at large.
In the most recent incident, a man was pushing a baby stroller when he was approached by two men at Spring and Pearl at about 11 a.m., said Sgt. John Delaney, aide to Police Commissioner William Fitchet.
One of the men pulled a gun and demanded the man hand over his wallet, some jewelry and his cell phone. Both suspects then fled toward Worthington Street, Delaney said.
The victim immediately headed to the police station, about 100 yards away at 130 Pearl St., where he flagged down two detectives, Gizenia Sedergren and Carmen Ayala of the Special Victims Unit, and told them what happened, he said.
The two detectives drove around the neighborhood and spotted two men fitting the descripions of the robbers at Chestnut and Taylor streets. They were able to apprehend one but the other managed to run off, Delaney said..
Arrested was Raphael Garay, 24, of 24 Lexington St.
He was charged with armed robbery, possession of a dangerous weapon, a spring-loaded knife, and outstanding warrants. He is due to be arraigned Monday in Springfield District Court.
The second suspect has been identified and police have requested an arrest warrant, Delaney said.
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