Joint ATL/Decatur PD news conference on boutique bandits planned for Friday afternoon
Friday afternoon, he AJC finally got around to publishing a report on news the Decatur blogs were reporting the previous afternoon (based on a tip from Carl). The rash of "blue jean
bandit" thefts in Atlanta has apparently spread to Decatur, where a
clothing store was struck by thieves within an hour of a similar
robbery in Buckhead.
This explains why it was it bit confusing when we read of the Decatur hit so soon after hearing of a similar hit in Atlanta -- necessitating some direct confirmation.
Kaleidoscope, a clothing store on West Ponce de Leon in downtown Decatur, was robbed Wednesday afternoon, Decatur police Capt. David Hipple said. A group of young males pepper-sprayed employees before fleeing with high-end blue jeans and other apparel.
The same thing happened
about an hour earlier, shortly before 4 p.m., at Brazil Fine Italian
Menswear on Peachtree Road near Piedmont Hospital, Atlanta police
spokesman Eric Schwartz said. Two men came into the store and stayed about 10 minutes before
leaving, only to return with about five or six other men. A female
employee was pepper-sprayed and punched in the face by the suspects. Police suspect the incidents are related. The suspects in the
Decatur robbery fled the scene in a stolen gold minivan police say they
think was used in the earlier Atlanta theft. Atlanta and Decatur police plan to hold a joint news conference
later this afternoon in Atlanta to discuss the incidents, Hipple said. Police for months have been looking for a band of thieves who have
been preying on high-end boutiques. Until now, the blue jean bandits
have struck late at night, breaking glass windows and doors to gain
entry. Hipple said video footage taken from surveillance cameras at the
Decatur boutique shows the suspects' faces.
The footage was shown on a WSB Ch 2 report on Friday's 5PM news.
Decatur police chased the minivan after the incident but lost the vehicle in Atlanta, he said.
The daylight robberies are brazen, Hipple said. "It happens quick, and I guess that's their advantage," he said.
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