Gang of four—which included two teens—responsible for five armed robberies, one stolen weapon, and one stolen car, that spanned Charles, St. Mary's, and Prince Georges counties
LEONARDTOWN, Md. - According to the St. Mary's County Sheriff's Department, on November 20, 2006 at approximately 1:40 p.m., patrol officers responded to a residence located in Mechanicsville for a reported armed robbery.
Police made contact with the 84 year-old female victim. She told the officers that she was robbed at gunpoint by a masked suspect while she was retrieving her mail at the end of her driveway. An undisclosed amount of U.S. currency and personal property were stolen from the victim. A second suspect was identified as a young female who was driving the vehicle which successfully fled the area.
The victim was not injured in the incident.
That same day at approximately 3:30 p.m., the same suspects robbed a second elderly female at gunpoint in Accokeek, Prince Georges County, Md. The suspects again successfully fled the area taking an undisclosed amount of U.S. currency and personal property.
On November 21, 2006 at approximately 1:52 a.m., police say that the same two suspects, in addition to two more suspects, robbed a gas station located in Lexington Park, Md. As the suspects were fleeing the area in their vehicle, police patrol units located them traveling northbound on Rt. 235 in California, Md. The suspects were apprehended and detained. Soon thereafter, they were positively identified by the store owner.
After the arrests, detectives from the St. Mary's County Bureau of Criminal Investigations (BCI) further investigated the robbery. They connected the suspects to the previous armed robberies that occurred in Mechanicsville and Accokeek.
As a result of the detective's investigation, numerous search warrants were executed in St. Mary's and Charles Counties. Numerous items of evidence connected to the first two robberies were recovered.
The weapon used in the Lexington Park armed robbery was discovered by detectives on Rt. 235 in California, Md. The suspects had apparently discarded it before being stopped by police shortly after the crime was committed.
Detectives from the Charles County Sheriff's Office and Prince Georges County Police also assisted in the investigation. The suspects were found to have committed two additional armed robberies in the Waldorf area over the past two months.
The vehicle used in the Mechanicsville armed robbery was found in Waldorf, Md. Police discovered that the vehicle had been stolen from Prince George's County. The recovered weapon was also listed as stolen from the Waldorf area.
The suspects were identified as 23 year-old Toccara Desper Bridgers of Waldorf, MD; 33 year-old Chandar Ceylon Dismuke of Suitland, MD; a 17 year-old male from Washington D.C.; and a 17 year-old male from Florida.
All suspects were placed under arrest and charged with various offenses to include Armed Robbery, Robbery, Theft Over $500, 1st Degree Assault, 2nd Degree Assault, and Theft Under $500. One 17 year old male, Cortez Khyree Williams was charged as an adult and is currently incarcerated in the St. Mary's County Detention Center along with Toccara Bridgers and Chandar Dismuke. The second 17 year-old male was detained by the Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) and is currently incarcerated in Cheltingham, Md.
The St. Mary's County Bureau of Criminal Investigations is an investigative team comprised of Detectives from the St. Mary's County Sheriff's Office and the Maryland State Police, Leonardtown Barrack. The unit was established on July 1, 2003 and is based in Leonardtown, Maryland.