Raleigh police arrest suspect in 5 armed robberies

RALEIGH (WTVD) -- The Raleigh Police Department said Monday it has arrested a suspect in five of seven recent armed robberies in the city.

Alvin Marion Pickett, 26, faces five counts of robbery with a dangerous weapon and five counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

Picket faces additional charges in an attempted robbery Sunday night at a Pizza Hut on Hillsborough Street. Witnesses said he showed a gun, but fled before completing the robbery. A Raleigh police officer spotted the car Picket was driving and he was arrested without incident.

Prior to Picket's arrest, detectives had been circulating surveillance pictures of a masked suspect wanted in armed robberies in the city.

The holdups included:

• The Nov. 15 robbery of the Nora and Nicky's store at 6520 Falls of Neuse Road

• The Nov. 21 robbery of the Raleigh Pharmacy at 927 W. Morgan Street

• The Nov. 27 robbery of the Jimmy John's restaurant at 5011 Falls of Neuse Road

• The Dec. 5 robbery of the Subway restaurant at 706 W. Peace Street

• The Dec. 7 robbery of the Sweet Frog shop at 6260 Plantation Center Drive

• The Dec. 13 robbery of the Hungry Howie's restaurant at 1814 Oberlin Road

• The Dec. 17 robbery of the Subway restaurant at 4003 Wake Forest Road

Police said the suspect was armed with a handgun during the crimes and has worn either a bandana or a ski mask to disguise himself.

Sunday night they released a third image of the suspect taken Dec. 17.

Police said the Nov. 15 robbery of the Nora and Nicky's store at 6520 Falls of Neuse Rd. and the Dec. 5 robbery of the Subway restaurant at 706 W. Peace St. remain under investigation.

Anyone with information is asked to call Raleigh CrimeStoppers at (919) 834-HELP or visit raleighcrimestoppers.org for text and email reporting options. CrimeStoppers pays cash rewards for anonymous tips that help solve cases.