MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Memphis Police have arrested four men who they say robbed a gas station in northeast Memphis and crashed their getaway car while fleeing police.
Anthony Lewis, Kyle Walker, Aramis Smith and Kevin Dowdy all face aggravated robbery charges.
Police say the robbery happened around 5 a.m. Wednesday morning at the Mapco on Summer Avenue near Virginia Run Cove.
According to police, two of the suspects came into the store while the clerk was stocking supplies near the fountain drinks. The clerk reportedly told police that one of the men grabbed her by her shirt while the other put a gun to her head and demanded that she open the safe.
Police say the clerk told them she couldn’t because the safe was on a “time lock delay.” The suspects then reportedly demanded her to open the cash registers and put the money in a plastic bag.
Memphis Police say the suspects left the store with the money and got into a brown Impala. A man who was pumping gas reportedly witnessed the robbery and called the police.
Police say two detectives in unmarked vehicles were already in the area when they got the call about the robbery. The detectives reportedly spotted the brown Impala driving westbound on I-40 east and followed it until uniformed officers to pull it over.
According to police, officers tried to pull the suspects over, but the suspects refused to stop. Police say the suspects ended up crashing the car at Riverside Drive and I-40 west. Smith reportedly stayed in the vehicle, but Lewis, Walker and Dowdy ran out of the car.
Police say the three of them were taken into custody after a brief foot chase. Officers reportedly recovered three handguns on the scene.
Memphis Police say officers reviewed security footage from the Mapco and saw that Lewis and Walker were the same clothes as the men seen robbing the store.
