A Pine Bluff man has been arrested in connection with two armed robberies in which victims were told to disrobe, but the arrest is not related to the two recent robberies in Bryant in which the victims were also forced to undress.
Jonquil King, 24, was arrested on Wednesday and faces charges of criminal attempt to commit murder, aggravated robbery, two counts of first-degree battery and theft of property. Saline County Sheriff’s Lt. Scotty Courtney said King could face additional charges as the investigation continues.
King allegedly was involved in the armed robberies of the Lucky 7 arcade and The Getaway arcade, both off U.S. 167 in Hensley. The robberies took place between July and August, but Saline County Sheriff Bruce Pennington said that information was not released publicly until King’s arrest because, he said, officers didn’t want to jeopardize the investigation.
Courtney said there were more suspects with King during the robberies, but no other arrests have been made thus far.
In each incident, the robbers tied up the victims tied up and forced seven women to undress. All the victims were robbed of their jewelry, cell phones, wallets and purses.
Courtney said none of the victims were sexually assaulted .
“They stripped them to slow them down,” he said, “before they got a chance to call police.”
King is being held in the Saline County jail and is schedule to appear before Benton District Judge Mike Robinson at 10 a.m. Friday to possibly have a bond set.
Courtney said King is also suspected of a similar crime in North Little Rock, but is not believe to be connected to two armed robberies in Bryant were three women were also stripped of their clothing.
The suspect in those two robberies is described as a black man between 5 feet 10 inches to 6 feet tall, weighing around 150 pounds, of medium build and in his early to mid-20s.
Police believe the same individual robbed both the Euphoria Salon and Spa in Bryant and Dollar General store on Arkansas 5.
An anonymous person donated a $1,000 reward to the Bryant Police Department for information leading to the arrest of this suspect.
According to incident reports, at 11:45 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 13, an armed man walked into Euphoria Salon and Spa on Main Street in Bryant and demanded money. After handing over an undisclosed amount of cash from the register and safe, the suspect reportedly ordered the victim into a back room and made her strip off her clothing. The victim then said the man took her wedding rings and several other pieces of jewelry, her cell phone and also the keys to her vehicle. The man then fled through the back door of the salon, leaving in an unknown direction.
The victim described the suspect as a black man, 6 feet tall, of medium build and in his early to mid-20s. She said the suspect was wearing a white T-shirt over his head.
On Monday, Aug. 17, a man similar in appearance to the suspect in the salon robbery walked into the Dollar General Store on Arkansas 5 North. Shortly after 9 a.m. police were called to the store where two female employees said the man was brandishing a pistol, demanding money and later forced them to remove their clothing.
Again, the victims were forced into a back room of the business after handing over an undisclosed amount of money from the cash register. After being stripped of their clothing, they were told to hand over jewelry and other items. The man then fled on foot in an unknown direction.
The victims told police the suspect is a black man, 5 feet 10 inches tall, weighing around 150 pounds and wearing a homemade ski mask that possibly was formed from a pair of pantyhose in which slits were cut for his eyes and mouth.
“I don’t know for sure if it is the same person committing these crimes, but the M.O. (modus operandi) is very similar,” Bryant Detective Todd Crowson said.
“The crimes are close enough to believe that it is the same person,” Crowson said. “It is odd that the two robberies happened that close together with the same M.O., so they’re probably related, but we don’t know for sure at this time.”
Crowson said the Bryant Police Department is communicating with other agencies in their search for the suspect and suggested that residents and business owners take a few precautions. He said people should guard themselves, even after the hopeful capture of the criminal in these two robberies, to protect themselves from other possible criminals.
“Of course people need to lock their doors, but also people should change up their routines,” he said. “If you have a certain routine, change it up sometimes, because what criminals watch for are patterns. If you normally lock up a business at 9 p.m., change it sometimes to earlier or later and don’t be there in the business by yourself if you can help it.”
Crowson added, “Maybe together, with everyone’s help in the community, we can catch this guy. In the meantime, we are stepping up patrol around local businesses for day and night.”
Anyone with any information pertinent to the Bryant investigation is asked to call the Bryant Police Department at 847-0211. Anyone with information involving the arcade robberies are asked to call the Saline County Sheriff’s Office at 303-5609.
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