Police make arrest in connection with weekend robbery

Police continue to investigate a pair of robberies that occurred Sunday and Monday evenings, and have made an arrest in connection with one of them.

Daunte J. Smith, 28, of Lilbourn, Mo., was arrested Monday night in connection with an armed robbery that took place earlier in the evening at Sprigg and Bertling streets.

The female victim told police she was leaving Village on the Green when she was accosted by two men, said Sgt. Barry Hovis of the Cape Girardeau police.

One of the men shoved a gun in her stomach and demanded money, she told police.

She turned over about $200 cash, and the men fled the scene, according to police reports.

Later that night, an off-duty officer spotted a vehicle matching the description the victim provided police. Scott County police and Missouri State Highway Patrol officers assisted in arresting Smith.

Smith is charged with armed criminal action and first-degree robbery. He is currently held at the Cape Girardeau County Jail on $50,000 bond.

The other robbery occurred late Sunday night.

The victim told police he was walking home along Ellis Street when, somewhere in the 500 block, he was approached by a group of five men.

They knocked him down, and he blacked out, he told police. When he awoke, his silver wristwatch was missing, along with about $40 in cash.

The victim sustained facial lacerations and abrasions to the forehead. He was transported to Saint Francis Medical Center for treatment.

The incident is under investigation, but no arrests have been made.

bdicosmo@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 245