LEWISTON – Four teenagers were arrested early Thursday, accused of beating a man with a metal hook and making off with his wallet in a downtown robbery on Lisbon Street.
The victim suffered bruises and possible broken bones. The teens were arrested minutes later after a brief police chase.
Police said the four teens came to Lewiston from the Portland area and attacked a man who was walking to his job at Country Kitchen Bakeries.
Investigators described the 4:45 a.m. mugging as a random act of violence. Arrested and charged with robbery were Kevin Martin, 18, of 58 Wellston Drive, Portland; Tim Desjardins, 18, of 12 Checkerberry St., South Portland; and Brandyn Dow, 18, of 12 Morning St., Scarborough. A fourth suspect is 17 years old and was not identified.
Police said the victim, a man about 30 years old, was walking at Cedar and Lisbon streets when the four teens jumped out of a car and attacked him. At least one of the suspects was wielding a large metal hook when the beating started, police said. Other weapons may have been used.
“This guy was just minding his own business and walking to work,” said Lewiston Police Lt. Michael McGonagle. “They used one of those hooks to whack him.”
After the victim was beaten to the ground, the attackers stole his wallet and drove off in a car, police said. A witness who saw part of the attack jotted down the license plate and called police.
Meanwhile, officers were out in the Pierce Street area looking for a group of teens said to be throwing bottles from a car. Police caught up with them a short distance away and the teens tried to flee on foot, investigators said.
Officers caught each of the suspects and arrested them on Webber Avenue seven minutes after the robbery was reported. The four accused in the robbery are believed to be the same teens who had been throwing bottles at people on Pierce Street. In addition to the robbery charge, Dow was charged with eluding police.
Police said they recovered the stolen wallet and returned it to the victim of the attack. They also found a metal towing hook attached to a rope inside the assailants’ vehicle, police said.
The victim of the early morning attack did not require hospitalization. The adult suspects in the robbery were taken to the Androscoggin County Jail in Auburn, where they were being held on $25,000 bail. The 17-year-old was taken to the Long Creek Juvenile Detention Center in South Portland.
Lewiston police were still trying to determine why the four teens were in Lewiston early Thursday and if they had been in the city overnight.
“They were in Lewiston, driving around, looking for mischief,” McGonagle said. “But we don’t know why they were in this area.”
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