Much of what I know is anecdotal, second party information. The morning after an armed robbery five doors away, the neighborhood was buzzing. I haven't been able to get the official report because apparently the HoCo police don't publish "daily" crime bulletins on weekends.
The incident in question occurred around midnight Friday. According to Peter, my neighborhood watch captain, a couple was accosted by armed men in their driveway as they arrived home. They had allegedly come directly from their store somewhere in Prince Georges county and had the days cash receipts with them. This was information the gunmen likely knew.
It would be hard to characterize my neighborhood as a high crime area. There are occasional reports of break-ins but in the six years or so of the neighborhoods existence, this is the first time I’ve heard of a weapon being leveled at a neighbor in the commission of a crime.
Even more unsettling is that the perpetrators reportedly fled on foot to a getaway car parked two blocks away. That means they likely ran past my house as they fled. Mama Wordbones and I gone to dinner in Catonsville on Friday night and arrived back got home around ten thirty. I don’t recall seeing anything out of the ordinary. In fact, it was sometime after midnight that I even bothered to close the garage door.
That’s what really strikes me about this incident. Our neighborhood of single family homes is the very picture of suburban tranquility. The street where the victims live is a cul-de-sac. There are street lights at regular intervals. The closest thru road is two blocks away where the reported getaway car sat. Even on a weekend night, the streets are fairly quiet. Up until Friday I thought nothing of my daughter walking alone from my house to her friends house on the street where the armed attack occurred.
Money wasn't the only thing stolen Friday night.
