TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

2 Jailed, 1 Sought In Robberies At 2 Offices In St. Pete

ADVERTISEMENT

By STEPHEN THOMPSON | The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 31, 2008

Marvin Terrell Baxter

Cavarus Dontrail Lewis

ST. PETERSBURG - St. Petersburg police have arrested two men and are searching for a third they say are suspected of robbing two insurance companies Tuesday afternoon.

One of the men tried to rob a third insurance company, but the manager of that business had been tipped off about the first two robberies and had the door locked, said St. Petersburg Police Department spokesman Georg Kajtsa.

Arrested Tuesday were Marvin Terrell Baxter, 21, and Cavarus Dontrail Lewis, 24, both of St. Petersburg.

Baxter has been charged with armed robbery in one of the holdups. He also has been charged with burglary because he hid from police in a house, Kajtsa said. Lewis was not charged in any of the robberies but was charged with auto theft.

Kajtsa said investigators do not know the identity of the third person.

The first robbery occurred at 4:40 p.m. at Florida No Fault Insurance, 3375 34th St. N., Kajtsa said. Three men walked in, with at least one of them armed, and threatened the manager and an employee while searching desks for money, Kajtsa said. They got a little more than $500 and left.

Less than 15 minutes later, two men – one wearing a ski mask, the other armed with a handgun – entered Trust Way Insurance, 3939 Central Ave. There were two insurance agents inside, Kajtsa said. The men rifled the desks in each cubicle and drove off in a gray Lincoln.

By the time one of the men walked up to the door of the Direct General Insurance, 1107 34th St. S., the manager had been warned that men were robbing insurance businesses, and he had an employee lock the door, Kajtsa said. A gunman tried the door, found it locked and left.

While officers were investigating the robberies, one of the department's undercover units spotted the Lincoln and radioed the car's whereabouts, Kajtsa said. Before a supervisor could authorize a pursuit, the Lincoln bolted and crashed near Third Avenue South and 45th Street. The occupants bailed and ran.

Lewis was tracked by a police dog, and Baxter was found in a house at 4501 Third Ave. S., Kajtsa said.

An investigation is ongoing.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT