By Tom Tracy
A group of thugs looking to knock over a neighborhood pharmacy and a Bonnie and Clyde robbery crew were among the hooligans hounded down and arrested by the 69th Precinct’s “Cops of the Month.” Captain Ralph Monteforte, the commanding officer of the 69th Precinct, proudly bestowed the honor upon the officers responsible for the stellar arrests – one of which led detectives to solve seven robberies that had taken place on Canarsie’s streets since Christmas. Monteforte explained that Police Officers Renee Wyatt-Shiver, Demetria Starks and David Barker were patrolling the corner of East 82nd Street and Avenue L on January 19 when they came across Dwayne Rhoden, 21, of the 2100 block of Strauss Street and Keyoa Robinson, 17, of the 40 block of Crown Street, just moments after the couple allegedly tried to rob a man. Since the robbery occurred in an area where several other muggings had occurred, allegedly by a male and a female, the officers took the couple in for line-ups. Seven of the victims identified Rhoden and Robinson as the couple that had allegedly mugged them at knifepoint. All of the robberies took place between Avenues L and N in the East 80s – right where Rhoden and Robinson were allegedly looking for prey, officials said. If closing seven robberies with the arrest of two people weren’t enough, cops from the 69th Precinct were also credited with apprehending a robbery crew wanted for a daring gunpoint robbery. Monteforte said that members of the 69th Precinct’s elite anti-crime team were responsible for apprehending three men just moments after they robbed a pharmacy at the corner of East 87th Street and Glenwood Road. Officials said that the three gunmen entered the pharmacy at about 11 a.m. on January 9, demanding controlled substances. The suspects grabbed the drugs and sped off in a dark-colored car, officials said. Working off descriptions from the pharmacist and a witness, the anti-crime team spotted and stopped the vehicle just as the suspects were getting on the Belt Parkway. The three suspects were arrested without incident. Two guns were recovered from the car, Monteforte explained. Members of the anti-crime team responsible for the arrest included Police Officers Lisa Cordero, Kethly Jean, Edmond Badir, Nicole Lee and Sergeant Edward Quigg. Other anti-crime team members — Sergeant Brandon Bersch and Police Officers Ron Mentore, Brett Raso and Michael Simmonds – were honored for an arrest that took place in December.
