Campus robbery suspects arrested

University Police have arrested a man they believe is responsible for four robberies and one attempted robbery in the past two months. William Danks, acting Deputy Chief of Investigations, said the man in custody may have committed a November robbery and an attempted robbery on Walnut Street, two October robberies on Hamilton Walk and one on the 3400 block of Walnut Street. "It's a matching description and type of incident," Danks said. Police have not yet released the name of the suspect, who was arrested this week and has also been accused of burglarizing a house on the 4100 block of Pine Street on November 21. Police believe the man may have committed an attempted robbery and a robbery on the 3100 block of Walnut Street -- adjacent to the Left Bank construction site -- in mid-November. In the first incident, a male Penn student reported that a man approached him on November 14 and demanded money. The student pushed him and ran away. The next day, a female Drexel University student reported that she was robbed of her backpack in the same location. Police believe the man involved in these two Walnut Street incidents is also responsible for three on-campus robberies in late October. The first incident occurred on October 29, when a female University student was robbed on the 3400 block of Walnut Street. Later that same day, another female University student reported that she was robbed of her backpack on the 3600 block of Hamilton Walk, behind the Quadrangle. The next day, a female University student reported that a man snatched her bag on the 3700 block of Hamilton Walk. All five of the alleged robbery victims described the suspect as an African-American male in his early 30s, between 5'8" and 5'10" tall. University Police have also released the name of a man arrested on November 27 for allegedly robbing a University student on 33rd Street and Powelton Avenue. Police believe the man, 19-year-old David Palmer, was also responsible for robbing a University employee on the 100 block of South 32nd Street on November 13 and a University student on the 100 block of South 45th Street on November 14. According to Danks, University Police have also "tentatively identified" two of the three suspects in the robbery of a male University student last Friday. The three suspects, all of whom are juveniles, allegedly approached the student at about 9:30 p.m. on the 300 block of South 43rd Street, displayed a revolver and demanded money. The student handed over his wallet, which contained $40 in cash, and his cellular phone, of unknown value. "We have identified some suspects through some work done by our investigators," Danks said, adding that the suspects were identified because University Police officers had noticed them in the area before the robbery.