Police investigate Rehoboth-area assaults
Delaware State Police are investigating five incidents of robberies and assaults in the Rehoboth area, but they are not saying whether the crimes are related.
Rehoboth Beach police Chief Keith Banks said several teens arrested during a fight at First Street Station gave witnesses the impression they were members of a gang while taunting the group of teens they were fighting with.
Banks said his department is working with state police to see whether an assault and robbery on May 29 on King Charles Avenue and the June 18 fight at First Street Station are related to a series of robberies and assaults around Rehoboth Avenue Extended.
Delaware State Police spokesman Bruce Harris said Troop 7 is conducting proactive patrols in the area. Harris would not say the incidents in the area near Rehoboth Avenue Extended were gang-related.
“The Delaware State Police will gather intelligence information surrounding the robberies; however, at this point we are unable to definitively say if it's gang involvement,” he said.
The string of incidents started May 29, when a 25-year-old Philadelphia man was robbed of his wallet and cell phone. State police say the man was approached from behind on Hebron Road around 2 a.m. by several black men and struck on the head with an unknown object and then robbed. The victim did not need medical attention. One suspect is described as 5-feet-10-inches tall, weighing 170 to 180 pounds. No description was provided for the other suspects.
State police said a 40-year-old Rehoboth man was walking to his house on Church Street in Burton Village around 12:40 a.m., June 5, when three to six black men approached him asking for cigarettes. The man was attacked by the group and struck several times. When he yelled for help, the group fled. Nothing was stolen, and the victim did not require medical attention. One suspect in this case is black, 14 to 20 years old, 5-foot-5 to 5-foot-10, weighing 150 to 180 pounds. There was no description for the other suspects.
Two women assaulted
Two women, 19 and 20 years old, were walking home from work at 11:40 p.m., June 16, when they were attacked from behind at the intersection of Rehoboth Avenue Extended and Church Street. Both women were struck on the head and fell to the ground. The women said the suspects were two black men, 18 to 20 years old, 5-feet-6 inches to 5-feet-8-inches tall and both weighing around 150 to 160 pounds.
The women said the perpetrators continued to assault them after they fell to the ground; their purses, which had their cell phones and cash inside, were taken. The women were taken to Beebe Medical Center where they were treated for multiple contusions and abrasions. The 19-year-old suffered a fractured cheek but was released.
Rehoboth Commissioner Pat Coluzzi said she had been told the two women mugged on Rehoboth Avenue Extended were working as waitresses in Rehoboth and were carrying cash on them.
Two incidents occurred two days later, June 18.
At 1:50 a.m., a 29-year-old New York City man, a 29-year-old from Malvern, Pa., and a 26-year-old woman from Asbury, N.J., were walking northbound on Hebron Road when they noticed they were being followed by two black males and a black female. The suspects attempted to catch up with the victims, asking the victims for directions. The suspects then struck the victims in the back of their heads and robbed them of an undisclosed amount of cash. The suspects fled the scene and no further description was provided. Police said the victims were treated at Beebe for severe contusions and abrasions to the head and face.
Norwood Street fight
Later that day, another assault took place at Norwood Street and Hebron Road in West Rehoboth.
Prior to the assault, an 18-year-old Rehoboth man was involved in a disagreement with two teens from Harrington, ages 16 and 17, on Hebron Road. Around 6 p.m., the Rehoboth man and his parents, both 35 years old, returned to the area for a social function. When they drove down Norwood Street, a large crowd gathered in the streets. The older teen approached the Rehoboth man and started a fight. The Rehoboth man's father attempted to keep others in the crowd from intervening.
State police say John M. Boyer of Harrington, 48, and Kevin Boyer of Millsboro, 36, came out of the crowd armed with a club and a shovel and assaulted the father, who was also stabbed with an unknown object during the fight.
The Rehoboth man and his mother tried to help the father but were chased to their vehicles by the two Harrington teens, who repeatedly kicked and punched the Rehoboth man as he got into his vehicle. Kevin Boyer held a shovel above the Rehoboth man's mother as she attempted to flee.
The two Harrington teens and John Boyer were arrested, but state police are still looking for Kevin Boyer. The teens were each charged with second-degree assault, second-degree conspiracy and offensive touching. The 16-year-old was released on $3,500 unsecured bond, while the 17-year-old was released into the custody of a parent on $10,000 unsecured bond. Police did not say whether John Boyer and Kevin Boyer were related or whether they were related to the teens from Harrington.
John Boyer was charged with first-degree assault, possession of a deadly weapon and second-degree conspiracy. He is being held at Sussex Correctional Institution on $47,000 secured bond.
Kevin Boyer was charged with first-degree assault, possession of a deadly weapon, second-degree conspiracy and aggravated menacing. Anyone with information should call the state police at 302-856-5850 or call Delaware Crime Stoppers at 800-847-3333.
Fight at First Street Station
At 10:30 p.m., June 18, another fight broke out, this time at First Street Station in Rehoboth. Banks said a summer officer saw a group of young black males and two white males on the Boardwalk preparing to fight. Officers managed to break it up, but soon after, this same group began to fight at First Street Station.
Banks said officers used pepper spray to break up the fight and arrested four juveniles, ages 14 to 17, and charged them with disorderly conduct, conspiracy and assault. He said most of the people involved in the fight were from the Rehoboth area, although two were from Harrington.
Banks said the boys involved made statements presenting themselves as a gang, and it appeared they were fighting a rival gang.
Rehoboth commissioner responds
Coluzzi has brought up the idea of providing bus passes to workers, particularly international students, who ride their bikes into town.
The city already subsidizes a program where employers within city limits are issued bus passes for their employees who park their cars at the Park & Ride off Route 1 and bus into town. Businesses that participate must have a valid city business license and are limited to 25 passes per business. The business must pay for any additional passes. The employees must fill out a form with their name and vehicle information to get a pass, which is to be used to go to work only.
City Manager Greg Ferrese said the city pays $3 per car, between $40,000 to $50,000 per year for the program. He said the program was started as a way to keep employees from parking in the residential neighborhoods.
Coluzzi said she was hoping to work out a deal for a similar arrangement for workers on bikes to park their bikes at the Park & Ride and take the bus into town. Coluzzi brought the idea up at the commissioners’ June 6 workshop, but it failed to get much traction from her fellow commissioners. Coluzzi said she has asked to have the item placed on the commissioners’ Tuesday, July 5 workshop agenda.
Ferrese said he did not have any estimates on how much such a program would cost. Currently, bicyclists can park their bikes at the Park & Ride and take the bus into Rehoboth at a cost of $1 to go in and $1 to come back.
Coluzzi said she has spoken with Rep. Pete Schwartzkopf, D-Rehoboth Beach, about strengthening the police presence in the area.
“We have to do something,” Coluzzi said.
Strategies to avoid robberies
Harris said there are several strategies to help prevent robberies. He said most strong-arm robberies take place between sunset and sunrise.
• Travel populated, well-lighted streets, avoid walking or parking in shadowed areas and try to walk with a companion
• Avoid taking shortcuts through deserted areas like parks, playgrounds or vacant lots
• If someone asks directions, be polite but maintain a safe distance and search for an immediate escape route
• If you are alone and think you are being followed, head for an occupied building such as a bar, restaurant or gas station. If none is available, cross the street in the middle of the block. If there is traffic, try to stop a car for help.
