Anne Arundel County police are investigating reports that two men were robbed in separate attacks in Brooklyn Park, though it does not appear the two incidents are related. One robbery occurred Christmas Eve but was not reported until Tuesday.
Police said the latest robbery occurred Tuesday night about 11:30 p.m. when a 25-year-old man from Pasadena said he had been waiting at a bus stop on Ritchie Highway, near Hammonds Lane, when three men wearing ski masks asked him if he had drugs.
The victim told police that he replied he did not have drugs, and that one of the men then pepper-sprayed him while others took off his shoes, shirt and pants, which contained his cellphone and money.
Earlier on Tuesday, police said a 43-year-old man reported being robbed on Dec. 24 while walking in the 100 block of Church Street, near Johnson Street, shortly before midnight. The victim said two men punched him and took money and prescription medication.
No arrests have been made in either case.
peter.hermann@baltsun.com.
Anne Arundel police investigate two robberies in Brooklyn Park
Before anyone knew the name Chrissy Polis, hundreds of thousands of people around the world had watched her being savagely kicked and beaten until she had a seizure at a Rosedale McDonald's as employees did little to intervene. The story quickly evolved from a simple shock video — a dime a dozen on the Internet — to one that illuminated the struggles of transgender individuals when Polis explained in an interview with The Sun how she had been attacked for using the female restroom. The suspect, 18-year-old Teonna Brown, was charged with a hate crime and sentenced to five years in prison. Some for advocates for gay, lesbian and transgender people found the sentence lenient, but also said use of hate crime statutes sent a message that such attacks would be taken seriously. (Baltimore Sun photo by Kevin Richardson)