Finksburg residents were distressed Wednesday when they learned about a robbery that occurred at Liberty Watershed, a fishing hole otherwise known as a safe locale.
“I?m extremely alarmed,” said Alice Altstatt, who lives near the watershed and walks several times a week with her mother on the trails near the water?s edge.
“Before this, I thought it was perfectly safe.”
Commissioner Perry Jones said the area is usually a quiet location for recreation.
“I don?t know of any other crimes committed there,” he said.
Maryland State Police at the Westminster barracks are searching for two suspects responsible for the strong-arm robbery, which occurs when force, not weapons, is used.
Three people were fishing at 7:40 p.m. Tuesday in the river at the end of Bollinger Mill Road when two other men hit and kicked them, demanding that they empty their pockets, state police reported.
The two assailants took an undisclosed amount of money from the victims and threw their cell phones and car keys into the reservoir, police said.
Police described the assailants as two white men in their early 20s, both a little taller than 6 feet with stocky builds.
One man, wearing no shirt, had a shaved head, police said.
The other, wearing a white shirt with white or tan cargo shorts, had dark hair, 1 inch in length, with a dark goatee.
The victims told police they believed the suspects drove a black Jeep Cherokee.
Anyone with information is asked to call 410-386-3000.
Number of robberies police responded to
» 2004: 60
» 2005: 53
» So far in 2006: 10
Source: Maryland State Police and Westminster police
