Arrest made in string of three July robberies

Mark Spivey, 29 allegedly held up three women in off-campus incidents. An on-going joint investigation by the University and Philadelphia police departments came to a head Tuesday night when officers arrested 29-year-old Mark Spivey of West Philadelphia, the suspect of a recent string of armed robberies near campus. Spivey -- who initially identified himself to police as Mark Lawson -- was arrested at approximately 10:51 p.m. when University Police Det. John Peterson observed a car parked at 38th and Lancaster streets matching the description given by victims in all three related robberies this month. The license number on the vehicle -- a 1987 light blue Plymouth sedan -- also matched the partial tag number given to police by a female University student who was the victim of the initial July 8 robbery. Spivey was transported to the Philadelphia Police Department's Southwest Detectives bureau where he was positively identified in connection with a Tuesday afternoon robbery at gunpoint on the 4300 block of Sansom Street. The incident, which occurred at about 1:25 p.m., happened in the rear lot of the Thriftway Supermarket building. A woman reported that a man approached her with a gun, stealing her purse and an identification car before fleeing by car. The victim described the car as an older model four-door Dodge Aris sedan, light blue in color. She was also able to provide police with a detailed description of her alleged assailant: a 5'6", 160-pound black male in his early 20s with a medium complexion and short cropped hair. She also reported that he was wearing a white T-shirt and blue denim shorts. The first robbery in which Spivey is suspected occurred outside 4211 Pine Street at approximately 5:58 p.m. on July 8. The victim, a female graduate student at Penn, reported that she was held up by a 5'10", 150-pound black male, who pointed an object wrapped in plastic at her, demanding her purse. She also described her assailant as approximately 20 to 25 years old, with short black hair and a goatee. The woman was able to provide police with a partial license plate number of the getaway car, which University Police Det. Joseph Hasara said was integral to Spivey's eventual arrest. "She was great.? she was dynamite," Hasara said of the victim. "Her information was one of the reasons we caught [Spivey]." The student also described the suspect's vehicle as a light-blue, American-made, mid-size four-door. The second robbery in which Spivey was allegedly involved occurred on July 23 at about 3:50 p.m. at 42nd and Locust streets. A 28-year-old female summer student at the University reported that a black male with a gun approached her as she was driving. The victim said the suspect stole her brown leather purse before getting back into his car, which she described as a light-blue Chevy four-door with Pennsylvania license plates. The second victim also described the suspect as 5'7", approximately 170 pounds, with a brown complexion, sideburns and wearing a black and white striped shirt, black shorts, white socks and sneakers. Hasara said that an investigation was launched based on similarities in the three incidents. "Based on the information received on the robberies involving a light blue car, there was an investigation by our unit," he explained As of yesterday night, Spivey had only been charged with Tuesday's incident in the Thriftway lot, although Hasara said he is currently under investigation for the other two robberies.

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