Two female Russian tourists were robbed in Garapan, while two masked men, including one armed with a gun, attempted to rob a jewelry shop in San Antonio, police said yesterday.
One Russian victim complained of pain in her left cheek after the suspect punched her twice in the Garapan robbery.
In that incident, a concerned citizen helped a police officer arrest the suspect, John M. Namauleg, an ex-convict who has a pending criminal case.
The 39-year-old Namauleg was taken to the Superior Court yesterday for bail hearing on charges of robbery, assault and battery, and disturbing the peace. His bail was set at $25,000 cash. Preliminary hearing will be on Sept. 20 at 9am.
Police detective Elias Q. Saralu stated in his report that police officer Peter Aldan was heading north along Beach Road, Garapan on Monday at 7pm when he saw a man holding another, later identified as Namauleg, along the sidewalk near the Garapan Health Dispensary building.
Aldan noticed that while the man was hugging Namauleg from behind, two female Russian tourists were standing next to them. The officer noticed that the tourists appeared shocked, scared, and frightened.
When Aldan got down from the police car, the man's girlfriend approached and told him that Namauleg tried to rob the two Russians.
Namauleg and the concerned citizen were struggling as the suspect tried to get free.
Aldan handcuffed Namauleg's right hand, but the suspect kept struggling. The concerned citizen helped the officer handcuff Namauleg's left hand.
The victims later told police through a translator that they were strolling along the pathway when the suspect grabbed a purse from one of them.
During the struggle, Namauleg allegedly pushed one victim to the ground and punched her on the face twice.
That's when the concerned citizen came to their rescue, holding Namauleg until the police officer arrived.
The concerned citizen, a Chuukese male, was there to pick up his girlfriend at the parking lot of the Carolinian Utt. When the Chuukese man's girlfriend saw Namauleg grabbing the bag from the tourists, she told her boyfriend to help the victims.
In the second case, a female employee of Jang's Jewelry Store in San Antonio was taken to the hospital for a swollen forehead and a laceration on her right leg after the suspects assaulted her.
The suspects in the foiled robbery of the jewelry store managed to escape, according to police officer Jason Tarkong.
Tarkong said that police officers responded to Jang's Jewelry Store on Tuesday at 12:30pm after receiving a report of a failed robbery attempt by two masked men.
Police investigation showed that a 59-year-old man and his 58-year-old wife were working at the store when two masked men entered the establishment.
One of the suspects who was armed with a handgun pointed the weapon at the male victim and shouted “Don't move!”
The second suspect, who was armed with a machete, stood guard. The female victim threw a table at the suspects, while her husband escaped and shouted for help.
One suspect hit the female victim in the face, causing her to fall. The suspects then fled on a white car that has a last digit of 6 or 8 on the license plate. They failed to get any money or items from the store.
The woman was brought to the Commonwealth Health Center.
Tarkong said the NMI Crime Stoppers Program is seeking the community's assistance for information on the attempted robbery.
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