Va. man charged in warrant with robbing Martinsburg store

February 01, 2008|By MATTHEW UMSTEAD

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - A man accused of robbing the same convenience store twice Jan. 21 in Front Royal, Va., was named in a warrant obtained Thursday by the Berkeley County Sheriff's Department that charges him with the robbery of a gas station in Martinsburg on the same day, police said.

Samuel E. Milbourne II, 37, of Front Royal, was linked to the robbery of the ROCS convenience store at 1619 W. King St. in Martinsburg last week by witnesses who were shown an array of photographs and information from police in Virginia, according to a news release by Sheriff's Department Deputy Sgt. B.F. Hall.

Front Royal police on Thursday confirmed reports that the robberies there happened hours before the ROCS robbery was reported at 11:44 p.m. Front Royal police also confirmed Thursday that Milbourne temporarily escaped custody Wednesday night before being recaptured and jailed in Warren County, Va.

Hall said Milbourne initially was caught in Prince George's County, Md., the day after the robberies.

Hall said Milbourne admitted in a jail interview Jan. 28 to committing the Martinsburg robbery, and Sheriff W. Randy Smith said Thursday that Milbourne denied involvement in the attempted robbery of the ROCS convenience store in Inwood, W.Va., the morning of Jan. 21.

"At least we got one out of two," said Smith, who added investigators are looking for another suspect in that incident.

Police have said the suspect in the Inwood robbery was wearing jeans, a gray hooded sweat shirt and a red flannel jacket. The ROCS store clerk told deputies the man had a droopy or hanging eyelid over his right eye and was said to be 5 feet 8 inches tall and about 40 years old.

The Inwood store clerk hit an alarm panic button and went to the store office after the suspect showed a knife and demanded money about 3:30 a.m., police had said. The man tried to open the register, but was unsuccessful and left the store, police said.

Milbourne will not be formally charged in West Virginia until there is a final disposition on his charges in Virginia, Hall said.

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