Armed robber targeting women at bus stops: Police

Philadelphia police are seeking a suspect who has committed at least six armed robberies targeting women at bus stops in the West Oak Lane neighborhood.

Since Dec. 6, police said an armed robber has been operating in the area of Thouron Avenue and Upsal Street, usually stealing cellphones from women waiting for the bus, NBC reported.

“It looks like he’s targeting women that are by themselves at the bus stop early in the morning,” Philadelphia Police Lt. John Stanford said to ABC. “The cellphones seem to be what he’s targeting, but again: He’s armed with a handgun so, you know, anytime you have these situations where someone is armed, [it can be a] very dangerous situation.”

Police have said that all but one of the victims have been women, ABC stated, also reporting that in the latest incident, at 8:35 a.m. on Monday on the 1200 block of Easton Road, a woman was robbed of her cellphone at gunpoint.

Police described the suspect as a black man in his early to mid 20s with a light complexion, freckles, discoloration, a mole and a medium build between 5-foot-6 and 5-foot-8, NBC stated.

“Be on the lookout for anybody that’s suspicious,” Stanford said to ABC. “This guy could possibly be in a vehicle and then exiting that vehicle approaching these women or on foot. He may be living in the area.”

Police have advised neighborhood residents to walk in groups, avoid alleys and isolated places, avoid wearing or carrying distracting items and avoid displaying a cellphone, NBC added.