12 people arrested in connection with 26 different robberies, Fort Worth police say
Fort Worth police have arrested 12 people in connection with 26 robberies in the city, officials announced Thursday.
The first suspect, 36-year-old Bradley Rice, is accused of offering to pay a man for a ride and then robbing him at knifepoint on Jan. 20, police said. Rice allegedly took the man’s wallet, keys, phone and truck.
Fort Worth police asked for the public’s help identifying him on social media and received multiple tips, according to a police statement.
Police issued an aggravated robbery warrant for Rice and he was arrested in Haltom City on Feb. 4 after officers there responded to a disturbance involving him, police said.
Police also arrested 23-year-old Justin Lockett, who they say is responsible for the largest string of robberies committed by a single person in the city’s history, officials said.
Lockett is accused of committing 24 aggravated robberies over several months, according to the statement.
After his arrest, Lockett cooperated with officers and provided a full confession, leading to the arrest of a second suspect, 24-year-old Aviyanna Weatherspoon, officials said.
Lockett’s robberies targeted businesses in the southern and southwestern areas of the city, according to the statement.
Police arrested nine people, including a juvenile, on Feb. 10 in connection with a robbery at a supermarket the previous day, officials said.
Four of those suspects acted as lookouts and one of them as a driver, while the remaining four entered the El Rancho Supermarket at 3220 N. Main St. in Fort Worth, police said.
The suspects then pepper-sprayed several employees, shattered jewelry cases and stole jewelry worth upward of $100,000 before fleeing in vehicles, according to the statement.
The vehicles were later seen in McKinney, where the nine suspects were arrested without incident, police said.
The suspects range in age from 16 to 51, according to the statement.
