On Learning Victim’s Bank Card Was Used, Cops Find Suspects at Nearby ATM
BOSTON, April 21, 2016—A woman and a juvenile male were arraigned today on charges they broke into a woman’s home and robbed her at gunpoint, only to be arrested with the victim’s ATM card at a nearby bank, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said.
QUAKNESHA GARVIN-JOHNSON (9/30/93) of Dorchester and a 17-year-old male from Dorchester were arraigned in Dorchester Municipal Court on charges of home invasion, armed robbery, improper use of a credit card, receiving stolen property, and witness intimidation. Garvin-Johnson is additionally charged with two counts of receiving a stolen credit card. The juvenile faces charges of unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful possession of ammunition, carrying a loaded firearm, assault with a dangerous weapon, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, assault and battery on a police officer, and resisting arrest.
At the request of prosecutors, a clerk magistrate in the court’s juvenile division set the 17-year-old’s bail at $100,000 and ordered him to stay away from and have no contact with the victim, stay away from the location of the offense and from his co-defendant, wear a GPS monitor, and be subject to house arrest in the event he is to be released on bail. Prosecutors requested $50,000 bail and the same conditions of release during Garvin-Johnson’s arraignment. Judge Thomas Kaplanes set $100,000 bail but declined to impose conditions of release.
Shortly after 11:00 a.m. yesterday, Boston Police responded to a report of a home invasion in the area of Trescott Street in Dorchester. Upon arrival, the victim told officers that a male and female broke into her home, and the male pointed a gun at her while demanding money. The victim had no cash and instead provided her debit card and PIN number, and the assailants took off with the card, a laptop, jewelry, and a black cell phone in an orange case. The male threatened the victim and disabled her home phone in an alleged attempt to prevent her from calling police, prosecutors said.
While police were on scene, the victim’s bank provided information that her debit card had been used to withdraw $200. Officers immediately traveled to the nearest bank branch, located on East Cottage Street, and located a male and female, later identified as the defendants, inside the ATM kiosk, prosecutors said.
Officers separated the juvenile and Garvin-Johnson and conducted a pat frisk of each for officer safety due to the nature of the alleged offense and the report that one of the assailants had a gun. The juvenile was found to be in possession of a loaded Star M43 Firestar 9mm Luger pistol, prosecutors said. He was placed in handcuffs after a brief struggle.
Garvin-Johnson was found in possession of four cell phones – one of which was a black phone encased in an orange phone case, prosecutors said. She was also in possession of the victim’s bank card, a second bank card in the name of another individual, and a small bag of jewelry. Police recovered ten $20 bills – totaling $200 – from the defendants, prosecutors said.
While officers were at the location, the victim’s bank confirmed that the East Cottage Street ATM had been the site of the withdrawal from the victim’s bank account, prosecutors said.
Garvin-Johnson, who allegedly told police that she had recently suffered a broken wrist, was handcuffed and placed in the rear of a cruiser. She became irate and was able to release herself from the handcuffs; once properly restrained and returned to the cruiser, she began to violently kick the vehicle’s windows.
While awaiting transport to a juvenile holding facility, the 17-year-old allegedly became violent, kicking one officer with a shod foot and spitting on another officer, prosecutors said.
The juvenile returns to court April 25. Garvin-Johnson will appear May 19.
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All defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
