Teens arrested for restaurant robberies

PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) - Police say two teens have been arrested in connection with robberies of two Portsmouth restaurants.

Jan Westerbeck with the Portsmouth Police Department says a juvenile and 19-year-old Samuel T. Porter of Suffolk were arrested in connection with a July 14 robbery of two Portsmouth restaurants.

Police say 29-year-old Shalonta L. Harrell of Suffolk is also sought for the robberies, and should be considered armed and dangerous.

According to police, two men entered a Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant on the 400 block of Chestnut Street around 5 p.m., collected money from registers and demanded the safe be opened.

Westerbeck says upon executing search warrants for the KFC robbery July 20, detectives found evidence linking the juvenile, Porter and Harrell with a robbery of the Kam Ho Chinese Food Express on the same day as the KFC robbery one hour earlier.

Police say multiple suspects kicked in the door of the Kam Ho Chinese Food Express and forced employees into the freezer at gunpoint.

In both robberies, the suspects left with an undisclosed amount of money and there were no injuries reported.

Westerbeck says the vehicle driven during the KFC robbery was also involved in a hit and run in Portsmouth. The vehicle, a Mitsubishi Eclipse, was registered to the 17-year-old juvenile's mother.

Police say the juvenile and Porter both face charges of robbery, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, abduction and conspiracy. Both are currently in Portsmouth City Jail.

If you have any information regarding the suspects or the incidents, contact Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP.