DATE: Sunday, September 14, 1997            TAG: 9709140058

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B4   EDITION: FINAL 
SOURCE: BY JANIE BRYANT, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: PORTSMOUTH                        LENGTH:   44 lines

POLICE SEARCH FOR LINKS IN CRIMES IN PORTSMOUTH

Police are investigating four robberies or robbery attempts that occurred Thursday night - three within 10 minutes of one another.

Investigators have not ruled out the possibility that the same person or people may have been involved in more than one of the robberies, said police spokeswoman Amber Whittaker.

These are the cases:

About 8:33 p.m., a man reportedly entered the Quick Shop in the 3500 block of Portsmouth Blvd., produced a gun and demanded money. The employees took cover on the floor, and the suspect fired the gun and fled.

No injuries were reported.

The suspect is described as a black male in his late teens to early 20s, about 5 feet 8 inches tall.

A 43-year-old man reported that he was robbed at gunpoint about 8:35 p.m. while getting out of his car in the parking lot of Tailgates in the 3900 block of Turnpike Road.

A second suspect was standing nearby.

The suspects were described as black males - one about 5 feet 7 inches, 135 pounds and wearing a white-and-black shirt or shirts and dark pants; the other about 5 feet 8 inches, 145 to 150 pounds, wearing dark jeans.

About 8:42 p.m., a man wearing a white shirt wrapped around his head reportedly entered the Victory Amoco in the 3700 block of Victory Blvd.

He produced a gun, placed it in the cash drawer under the window and ordered the clerk to come to him.

The clerk picked up a phone and called 911, and the robber fled.

The suspect was described as a black male wearing a black shirt and dark pants.

About 10:14 p.m., a man reportedly showed up at the Travelers' Inn in the 300 block of Effingham St. inquiring about room rates.

He then came around the corner, placed a handgun in the clerk's back and forced her into a corner before leaving with an undisclosed amount of cash.

He was described as a black male in his 20s, about 5 feet, 7 inches tall and 150 pounds, wearing a dark-colored jogging suit.

Anyone with information on these robberies or robbery attempts should call the detective bureau at 393-8536. KEYWORDS: ROBBERIES

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