By JAMES MITCHELL
Sunday Times Newspapers
LINCOLN PARK – With the help of some alert employees, an attempted robbery was prevented that was likely connected to last month’s armed robbery at Fashion Bug. Suspects in both incidents are scheduled for preliminary exams this week and next.
Employees at the Lincoln Park Credit Union, 1400 Emmons, called police on July 14 to report that a green Ford Taurus was in the area with familiar-looking occupants acting suspiciously.
Credit Union employees were among the witnesses who spoke with police on June 12, when an armed robber stole an estimated $400 from the nearby Fashion Bug, 3622 Fort St.
Responding officers observed two things when they arrived at the scene: The vehicle suddenly leaving the parking lot, and the 21-year-old suspect lingering near the front door of the Credit Union wearing a black, zipped-up hoodie and black gloves, with an unknown suspected weapon in the front pocket.
Two police officers approached the male suspect, while a patrol car followed and stopped the Taurus. The suspect, Christopher Kaszubowski, initially told police he was there to make a withdrawal. Then he said he was there to open an account. He said he wore the gloves as he worked as a landscaper, and said he lived in Huron Township and was on the way to Novi for work. He said his girlfriend driving.
Within 10 minutes, a Fashion Bug employee was on the scene at the request of the police.
“That’s the guy who robbed us,” the employee said.
Elsewhere, police pulled over the Taurus driven by 22-year-old Brandi Whiting. Told the vehicle was suspect in prior robberies, Whiting exited it when asked, and officers observed what appeared to be a bag of crack cocaine and a bag of marijuana on the driver’s seat.
Kaszubowski and Whiting were arraigned on July 16, and faced a preliminary examinations of the evidence against them Tuesday on charges of armed robbery, a felony carrying a possible prison sentence of 15 years. Kaszubowski was given a $25,000 cash bond; Whiting a $5,000 cash bond.
A scheduled preliminary exam Tuesday was adjourned. Whiting’s next appearance in Lincoln Park’s 25th District Court is Tuesday at 9 a.m.; Kaszubowski will appear on Tuesday, Aug. 9.
(James Mitchell can be reached at [email protected])