THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, March 16, 1995 TAG: 9503160421
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: NEWPORT NEWS LENGTH: Short : 48 lines
Two men chased down two 12-year-old boys moments after they allegedly robbed a 62-year-old woman at knifepoint.
One man followed one of the boys with the woman's purse until the boy dropped it; the other man grabbed the second youngster as he was climbing a fence. When police took the boys into custody, the youths were laughing at the prospect of being arrested, a detective said.
``I think it's wonderful what they did,'' said Olivia Perry of the men who helped her. She was shaken but not injured.
Perry was robbed just before 6 p.m. Monday at an intersection, moments after she got off a Pentran bus and headed for home, said Detective Bill Morgan.
One of the boys pulled an 18-inch knife and demanded money, while the other one said he had a gun, Perry said.
``One of the boys started saying, `Give me your money. Give me your money.' I was swinging my pocketbook at them, so I could try to make my getaway,'' she said. ``I was scared to death. Any time somebody chases you with a knife in the broad daylight, you know they mean business. If he had cut me with that knife, I was sure I was going to die.''
But the boys snatched the purse and took off running.
That's when Bruce Wilson, a security guard from Smithfield, spotted the commotion as he was driving by.
``Once he got the lady's pocketbook, I was just trying to see if I could get it back for her,'' he said Tuesday.
Wilson followed the boy who was carrying the purse until the boy dropped it. The other boy had an artificial leg and wasn't able to get far, police said.
Howard Blakeney, a neighbor of Perry, ran after the boy who dropped the purse and grabbed him as he tried to climb a fence, Morgan said.
``These kids had no remorse. They just thought it was a big joke,'' said Morgan, noting that police recovered the large knife at the scene.
Each boy was charged with robbery. Police would not say whether they were jailed or released.
KEYWORDS: ROBBERY ARREST by CNB