May 13, 2008 7:08 pm US/Eastern
Two Burger King Bandits Denied Bond
Christopher Hicks and Robert Jackson both ordered to be held without bail
DEERFIELD BEACH (CBS4) ―
Two of the three men who allegedly robbed a Boynton Beach Burger King then led police on a gunfire laced chase on I-95, appeared in bond court Tuesday afternoon.
Christopher Hicks and Robert Jackson are being held without bond after appearing in court.
The Broward Sheriff's Office said the incident began late Friday evening when three masked men held up the fast food restaurant near Woolbright Road and I-95. Surveillance video of the robbery showed the three masked men wore black clothing, gloves and one of the men was armed with a 9 millimeter handgun. After forcing the manager to hand over some cash, the men reportedly took off, firing several shots as they ran across the parking lot to a waiting car.
Boynton Beach took up pursuit as the robbery subjects sped onto I-95. During the chase, the robbery suspects fired on the pursuing officers, some of those rounds smashed through windshield of a Florida Highway Patrol car; the officer inside was not injured.
"The complete disregard that these three suspects had for those employees, for then innocent bystander whose car they shot at, for the police officer that they fired at is really despicable the complete disregard they had for the lives of others," sa id Stephanie Slater of the Boynton Beach police department.
The car reportedly exited at Hillsboro Boulevard and the men bailed out and started shooting at the pursuing officers in the 100 Block of SW 3rd Ct., near Dixie Highway. More than 90 officers from the FHP, Boynton Beach and BSO set up a perimeter and canvassed the area using K-9 dogs and SWAT teams.
BSO said K-9 deputies eventually found 18-year old Christopher Hicks and 20-year old Reginald Robinson Jr. hiding in a shed near 171 SW 4 St. They were reportedly trying to conceal evidence when they were captured. The third suspect, 19-year old Robert Louis Jackson Jr., was taken into custody at 1:23 a.m. on Saturday. He was taken to North Broward Medical Center to be treated for a gunshot wound he had sustained in the earlier gunfight with Boynton Beach police. The BSO reports one of the suspects admitted taking part in the shootings and told detectives as they were being pursued, they all took turns shooting at police.
"Following the robbery in Boynton Beach, they shot at an innocent civilian, they lead police on a chase thru out two counties, and they fired at police," said BSO spokesman Mike Jachles. "They tried to kill an FHP trooper; they got in a gunfight with Boynton Beach police. They fled, they eluded, they resisted, they're dangerous."
Detectives were also able to link the men to a second fast food robbery, but did not elaborate on when or where it happened.
Since January, more than 20 fast food restaurant have been robbed from Ft. Lauderdale to Deerfield Beach.
All three men have been charged with attempted murder of a law enforcement officer, aggravated assault with a firearm, fleeing and eluding police and resisting arrest. Hicks and Robinson also face tampering with evidence charges.
(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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