Police have made arrests in two separate robberies that occurred over the weekend. One of the suspected perpetrators was armed, and the other pretended to be.
At about 4:15 a.m. Sunday, a man approached an 18-year-old male Penn sophomore on the 3900 block of Walnut Street.
The student said the man showed him a small, silver-colored handgun and demanded his wallet. The thief made off with $100 in cash.
Just 20 minutes later, police found Abdul Wilkins ? a 20-year-old man from the Juniata section of the city ? hiding in bushes along the 3700 block of Hamilton Walk and arrested him. The entire cash amount was recovered, along with a fully loaded .357 Ruger Magnum revolver.
Wilkins is facing a slew of charges, including robbery, theft, aggravated assault and weapons violations.
Another robbery occurred at about 11:45 p.m. Friday.
A 19-year-old woman from eastern Philadelphia was approached while walking along the 3600 block of Chestnut Street.
The robber showed the woman what appeared to be a gun. She gave him her ATM card, which bore her picture, as well as $69 in cash.
Moments later, Terrance Meacham ? a 40-year-old Southwest Philadelphia resident who fit the victim's description of the thief ? was stopped by police on the 3800 block of Ludlow Street. Police recovered the card, the cash and a black toy handgun.
Meacham is charged with robbery, theft, aggravated assault and possession of an instrument of crime.
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